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to learn what the opposition were saying of his creed a hundred years ago.

The chapter will be of more interest still to Conservatives, and Liberals (like I), who wish to add to their store of arguments against the competition.

Perhaps Tony Blair read "Poverty," before he created "New Labour," brilliantly succeeding where the "Gang of Four" failed with their "Social Democratic Party," by creating a new centre force in British politics from the ashes of the otherwise defunct Labour Party?

As a Liberal, I of course believe in accord and compromise in politics. As such I have no difficulty, despite being a believer in another political party, in stating that I had great respect for Tony Blair in his early days as Prime Minister. A respect that ended when it was proved to most how wrong he was to take us into the Iraq conflict. A conflict which ranks in senseless stupidity close to the First World War (which I'm ashamed to say we entered into under the stewardship of a Liberal Government) and Vietnam.

One area Tony Blair was always a little weak on was the environment - not too good at recycling, for instance. However, the creation of "New Labour" was an early success in recycling. He took a worn out party, otherwise incapable of defeating the Conservatives (especially as the partial resurgance of Liberalism in Britain has led to three parties existing in a Two Party System), and recycled it into a new force. He also recycled in a lot of Liberal policies and as time went by recycled in more and more Conservative policies, taking his party further and further to the right.

The only way he failed in this respect was in his choice of name. It would have been more honest if he'd recycled the name as well. He should have called it "New Social Democrats."

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Poverty by James Platt