Rare Video of Tony Blair When he Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
From 1983 to 2007, Blair was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield. He was elected Labour Party leader in July 1994, following the sudden death of his predecessor, John Smith, who together with his predecessor, Neil Kinnock, had started to move the party closer to the political centre, in order to win power. Under Blair's leadership, the party used the phrase "New Labour", to distance it from previous Labour policies and the traditional conception of socialism. Blair declared support for a new conception that he referred to as "social-ism", involving politics that recognised individuals as socially interdependent, and advocated social justice, cohesion, equal worth of each citizen, and equal opportunity.[1] Critics of Blair denounced him for having the Labour Party abandon genuine socialism and accepting capitalism.[2] Supporters, including the party's public opinion pollster Philip Gould, stated that after four consecutive general election defeats, the Labour Party had to demonstrate that it had made a decisive break from its left-wing past, in order to win an election again.[3]
In May 1997, the Labour Party won a landslide general election victory, the largest in its history, allowing Blair, at 43 years old, to become the youngest Prime Minister since Lord Liverpool in 1812. In September 1997, Blair attained early personal popularity, receiving a 93% public approval rating, after his public response to the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.[4][5][6] The Labour Party went on to win two more elections under his leadership: in 2001, in which it won another landslide victory, and in 2005, with a reduced majority. In the first years of the New Labour government, Blair's government introduced the National Minimum Wage Act, Human Rights Act, and Freedom of Information Act. Blair's government also carried out the devolution, the establishing of the Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly, thus fulfilling four of the promises in its 1997 manifesto. In Northern Ireland, Blair was involved in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
Blair ardently supported the foreign policy of the Bush administration, and ensured that British Armed Forces participated in the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and, more controversially, the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Blair has faced strong criticism for his role in the invasion of Iraq, including calls for having him tried for war crimes and waging a war of aggression.[7] In 2016, the Iraq Inquiry strongly criticised his actions and described the invasion of Iraq as unjustified and unnecessary.
Blair was succeeded as the leader of the Labour Party on 24 June 2007, and as Prime Minister on 27 June 2007 by Gordon Brown.[8] On the day that Blair resigned as Prime Minister, he was appointed the official Special Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East, an office which he held until 27 May 2015. He now runs a consultancy business and has set up various foundations in his own name, including the Tony Blair Faith Foundation.
Tony Blair has warned the UK is heading for "Brexit at any cost" in a speech to persuade voters to change their mind about leaving the European Union.
The former prime minister urged Remain voters to "rise up" against the Government's drive for Brexit, which will cause "real damage" to Britain and the embitterment of future generations.
Speaking at the headquarters of the Bloomberg financial news agency in London where David Cameron first set out his plan for an in/out vote on Britain's EU membership, he issued a rallying cry against the referendum vote which was "based on imperfect knowledge".
Mr Blair launched a direct attack on Theresa May and senior Cabinet ministers, highlighting the fact that six months ago they were declaring that Brexit would be a catastrophe but now it is seen as an "opportunity"
He said: "The Prime Minister and his Government are not masters of this situation, they are not driving the bus. They are being driven."
Before the speech even began, Mr Blair's comments prompted a furious backlash from pro-Brexit MPs. Iain Duncan Smith said his comments were "arrogant" and "out of touch".
He said: "What he really means is that he wants the British people to keep on being asked the same question again and again and again until they get it right. It just shows how arrogant and out of touch he and his friends in the political elite are. It's complete nonsense.
"I suppose he learnt this disregard for democracy over the last few years from the friends he was advising in Kazakhstan."
Tony Blair has urged pro-Europeans to "rise up" and persuade the British people.
In a keynote speech, the former prime minister said voters had backed leaving the EU without knowing the true cost and should have the opportunity to change their minds.
Speaking at the headquarters of the Bloomberg financial news agency in London where David Cameron first set
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