Blair admits times tough after double blow

Britain’s Tony Blair admitted on Thursday he was going through a tough period as his supporters urged him to reassert his control of go...

Britain’s Tony Blair admitted on Thursday he was going through a tough period as his supporters urged him to reassert his control of government.

Blair suffered the resignation of close government ally David Blunkett on Wednesday and was then forced to shelve counter-terrorism plans to avoid losing his first major vote in parliament.

The prime minister told a cabinet meeting on Thursday that “times are tough, but they are tough because we are trying to do tough things”, his spokesman said.

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Blunkett’s resignation from government, for the second time in the space of just 10 months, captured all the headlines. But more worrying for Blair was the way rebels in his Labour party cut his parliamentary majority to just one — its lowest ever — over counter-terrorism measures, forcing his ministers to shelve major parts of the legislation.

Blair had personally insisted on Wednesday that police needed powers to hold terrorism suspects for up to 90 days. Now the government will consult again in search of consensus. —Reuters

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