Below is the statement made by Tony Blair earlier today, which shows severe signs of detachment from reality. Note that he has apologized "on behalf of the Labour Party for the last week."
He is "apologizing" for the fact that his best friends, nay even some of his most grovelling Toadies, in the party have called for him to go. And then invokes "the interests of the country" to change the subject.
He is impervious to the opinion polls that show that the "country" thinks he should take a hike, as well as most of his party members. The attitudes of the latter can easily be explained by his arch dismissal of the Labour Party Conference, and the Trade Union Conference. "The next TUC will be my last TUC, probably to the relief of both of us." There is not the slightest hint of acknowledgment that, following the failure of his Clintonesque schemes to sell influence and honours to millionaires, it is only the unions that stand between the Labour Party and total bankrupcy.
"We've got the blockade on the Lebanon lifted today," he announces proudly,overlooking his part in frustrating the ceasefire for a month of slaughter and demolition, and taking credit for the diplomatic efforts of others like Kofi Annan. Blair himself has, as hundreds of Palestinian intellectuals pointed out in a letter to greet his mediation efforts, no credibility whatsoever because of his slavish following of Bush and Olmert.
The he adds "we can't treat the public as irrelevant bystanders in a subject as important as who is their PM," Indeed. He should listen to the opinion polls, as well as the Labour Party members, and go immediately, and the insouciant arrogance of his statement contains an adequate explanation of just why he lost their support.
Blair's Statement.
"The first thing I'd like to do is to apologise actually on behalf of the Labour Party for the last week, which with everything that's going on back here and in the world has not been our finest hour to be frank. But, I think what is important now is that we understand that it's the interests of the country that come first and we move on.
"Now, as for my timing and date of departure, I would have preferred to do this in my own my way but has been pretty obvious from what many of my Cabinet colleagues have said, earlier in the week, the next party conference in a couple of weeks will be my last party conference as party leader. The next TUC will be my last TUC, probably to the relief of both of us. But I'm not going to set a precise date now. I don't think that's right. I will do that at a future date and I'll do it in the interests of country and depending on the circumstances of the time. Now that doesn't in any way take away from fact it's my last conference but I think the precise timetable has to be left up to me and to be done in a proper way.
"Now, I also say one other thing after the last week. I think it's important for the Labour Party to understand and I think the majority of people in the party do understand, that it's the public that comes first and it's the country that matters and we can't treat the public as irrelevant bystanders in a subject as important as who is their PM. So we should just bear that in mind in the way we conduct ourselves in the time to come. And in the meantime I think it's important that we get on with the business. I mean I was in a primary school earlier. Fantastic new buildings, great new IT suite. School results improving. I'm here at this school that just in the last few years has come on by leaps and bounds doing fantastically well. We've got the blockade on the Lebanon lifted today. You know, there are important things going on in the world. I think I speak for all my Cabinet colleagues when I say that we would prefer to get on with those things because those are the things that really matter to the country. So, as I say, it's been a somewhat difficult week but I think it's time now to move on and I think we will."
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