SOS
09-07-2006, 05:42 PM
Forbes (http://www.forbes.com/business/2006/09/07/blair-prime-minister-next-cx_cn_0907blair.html)
It is a shame.
Blair: I Will Quit Within A Year
LONDON -
Britain's tempest-tossed Prime Minister Tony Blair appeared a little jaded when he was finally hauled before television cameras Thursday and asked to put an end to speculation about his exact resignation date.
Blair avoided discussion about a specific departure date, but he said the annual Labor Party conference this month would be his last. The next conference is scheduled for September 2007.
In a speech punctuated by grimaces and pregnant pauses--all which gave the impression of spontaneity--there was a note of defiance in the prime minister's voice.
"I would have preferred to do this in my own way," he said, clearly unhappy at being cornered by the media as well as members of his own political party. Blair likely hoped that his promise to vacate his office within a year will appease critics who are calling for him to step down.
Downing Street, the residence of the prime minister, rejected suggestions that a deal had been struck to hand over power on May 4, three days after Blair notches ten years in office and the day after local elections in Britain.
"The precise time table has to be left to me and has to be done in the proper way," Blair said.
The voices urging Blair to leave office soon--or give some clue of his departure date--have grown deafening in recent weeks. Eight junior government officials quit Wednesday after calling for his resignation, and there were media reports suggesting there had been a heated exchange between Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, the dour Scotsman mooted to be the next prime minister.
"This cannot and should not be about private arrangements, but of what is in the best interests of our party ... and the best interests of our country," said Brown, who must now have the scent of power tantalizing his nostrils.
Brown may appear to be the anointed successor to Blair when the prime minister decides to move aside, but he may have some potential rivals for the top job. A leadership contest will ensue if other members of the cabinet vie with Brown for the post. The final decision lies with an electoral college split equally three ways between the 354 Labor Members of Parliament, party members and affiliated trade unions. Therefore, up to a million people will end up having some say in any leadership race.
Meanwhile, the pound has been under pressure as speculation intensifies over the future of the British prime minister. The pound bought $1.8744 on Thursday evening in London, down from $1.8946 late Tuesday. There should be no lasting damage to the currency; Margaret Thatcher's forced exit as Britain's prime minister in 1990 had little, if any, effect on the pound.
It is a shame.
Blair: I Will Quit Within A Year
LONDON -
Britain's tempest-tossed Prime Minister Tony Blair appeared a little jaded when he was finally hauled before television cameras Thursday and asked to put an end to speculation about his exact resignation date.
Blair avoided discussion about a specific departure date, but he said the annual Labor Party conference this month would be his last. The next conference is scheduled for September 2007.
In a speech punctuated by grimaces and pregnant pauses--all which gave the impression of spontaneity--there was a note of defiance in the prime minister's voice.
"I would have preferred to do this in my own way," he said, clearly unhappy at being cornered by the media as well as members of his own political party. Blair likely hoped that his promise to vacate his office within a year will appease critics who are calling for him to step down.
Downing Street, the residence of the prime minister, rejected suggestions that a deal had been struck to hand over power on May 4, three days after Blair notches ten years in office and the day after local elections in Britain.
"The precise time table has to be left to me and has to be done in the proper way," Blair said.
The voices urging Blair to leave office soon--or give some clue of his departure date--have grown deafening in recent weeks. Eight junior government officials quit Wednesday after calling for his resignation, and there were media reports suggesting there had been a heated exchange between Blair and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, the dour Scotsman mooted to be the next prime minister.
"This cannot and should not be about private arrangements, but of what is in the best interests of our party ... and the best interests of our country," said Brown, who must now have the scent of power tantalizing his nostrils.
Brown may appear to be the anointed successor to Blair when the prime minister decides to move aside, but he may have some potential rivals for the top job. A leadership contest will ensue if other members of the cabinet vie with Brown for the post. The final decision lies with an electoral college split equally three ways between the 354 Labor Members of Parliament, party members and affiliated trade unions. Therefore, up to a million people will end up having some say in any leadership race.
Meanwhile, the pound has been under pressure as speculation intensifies over the future of the British prime minister. The pound bought $1.8744 on Thursday evening in London, down from $1.8946 late Tuesday. There should be no lasting damage to the currency; Margaret Thatcher's forced exit as Britain's prime minister in 1990 had little, if any, effect on the pound.