One thing that comes across about Tony Blair, watching him being interviewed by Andrew Marr, is the almost total lack of regret. It is true that he has much to be proud of, in the way he led the government that reformed public services, and very much the way Britain feels about itself. A more tolerant and open nation is the positive legacy he leaves behind him.
However, there was no admittance that he got things wrong, especially in the invasion of Iraq. Andrew Marr is usually a very forensic interviewer, and challenged Blair on many subjects, but on this he seemed to let him get away with it. Indeed, it seemed to me, that Tony Blair was almost denying what he said in the speech to parliament in March 2003 regarding the forty-five minute claim.
This became even more of a worry when he spoke about Iran, and was more or less saying he would back military action there too. Even under his doctrine of intervention, which is against international law, though I am always reminded of Hedley Bull in these situations, in which aggression is first condemned, but is accepted if successful, invasion of iran without a specific UN resolution to do so would be illegal.
Andrew Marr was correct when he said that Tony Blair had indeed become a conservative, and that David Cameron would be applauding him. I won't go as far as saying he has left Labour, but his future vision would have taken Labour very much into the territory now occupied by the Cameron wing of the Tory party. I will now read his book, and let's see if he explains himself better there.
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