[Ugnet] Blair asks voters for another chance

[Edward Mulindwa]

Blair asks voters for another chance By Katherine Baldwin Click to enlarge photo LONDON (Reuters) - Tony Blair has appealed to voters to give him a third chance as prime minister in a strikingly personal speech that sought to heal wounds over Iraq and tackle discontent before an expected May election. Polls put Blair on track to win. But Labour fears apathy, protest votes over the war and lack of trust in the 51-year-old prime minister could slash its huge majority or let the Conservatives win by default. Likening his relationship with the public to a turbulent marriage, Blair acknowledged on Sunday tempers had flared but said he had learnt lessons and grown "a little wiser". "I understand why some people feel angry not just over Iraq, but many of the difficult decisions we have made. And, as ever, a lot of it is about me," he told a Labour Party rally in his most personal message yet of the escalating election campaign. "It's not a bad idea to think of it in terms of being like any relationship: you the British people and me, the person you chose as your prime minister. Now you ... have to sit down and decide whether you want the relationship to continue." Blair must name the election date about one month in advance but his deputy John Prescott on Sunday virtually confirmed May 5 as the day -- when Britain will also hold local elections. After 18 years in opposition, Blair helped transform Labour to appeal to the middle classes, scoring a landslide in 1997 on the back of a public wave of euphoria and huge personal popularity. He won a similar landslide in 2001. But trust has fallen on Blair's support for U.S. President George W. Bush in Iraq, a war most Britons opposed at the start. The anti-war Liberal Democrats stand to gain most from anger over Iraq. That could split the opposition vote and bolster the Conservatives, analysts say. The Conservatives, who backed the invasion of Iraq, are campaigning heavily on trust and say Blair has deceived voters on Iraq, taxes and improvements to public services like schools and hospitals. "Most people think Britain is heading in the wrong direction -- they feel let down and forgotten by Tony Blair," said Conservative chairman Liam Fox on Sunday. "I'M BACK" Giving an impression of deep soul-searching, Blair accepted some voters felt he had neglected domestic issues for foreign diplomacy, had failed to listen and had appeared arrogant. "If you're not careful, 'doing the right thing' becomes 'I know best'," Blair said, flirting with a mea culpa. But he always knew his first duty was to Britain, he said. "I'm back ... Back with a relentless focus on the job of delivering better lives for Britain's hard-working families." Fearing complacency and apathy could be Labour's worst enemy, Blair urged supporters to turn out to vote. Labour has sought to draw the dividing lines with the Conservatives, making pledges on childcare, education and health with economic stability the backbone of its message to voters. The government touts the longest period of continuous growth on record -- 50 successive quarters -- and Britain's low interest rates, inflation and unemployment as proof they are the best stewards of the world's fourth largest economy. The Conservative Party calls Labour's election pledges -- which also cover immigration and crime -- vacuous and woolly. But Blair on Sunday said the Conservatives had not changed since the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major -- both deeply unpopular when they left office.

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