British Prime Minster Tony Blair’s hopes of leading Britain into the single currency before the next general election are in ruins after Labour loyalists admitted this week that Downing Street’s battle with the BBC has ”derailed” the pro-euro campaign.
As Blair intensified his preparations for his appearance on Thursday, before the Hutton inquiry into the death of David Kelly, supporters of the single currency admitted that a euro referendum has become the most high-profile casualty of the inquiry.
Blair, who has been in discussions with government advisers, is expected to mount two key defences at the inquiry: that he was not responsible for ”sexing up” the arms dossier and that the Ministry of Defence was responsible for the ”naming strategy” that led to the outing of Kelly.
Downing Street aides are hoping that convincing performances this week will begin to restore trust in Blair, allowing him to regain the initiative on the domestic front in his Labour party conference speech next month.
Ian Taylor, the Conservative chairperson of the European movement, said yesterday: ”All attempts to have a [pro-euro] roadshow have been knocked out of the window. There has been damage to the standing of the government …”
Blair had hoped to head the campaign for a euro referendum. The admission that it will have to be delayed coincides with a major restructuring of the Britain in Europe campaign, which is expected to lead to the departure of its chief executive, Simon Buckby. — Â