The promise of Blair's 'New Labour' and a new politics was not fulfilled despite years of prosperity

No British politician has entered prime ministerial office riding the wave of goodwill upon which Tony Blair swept into Downing Street in 1997. His campaign’s theme tune, ‘Things Can Only Get Better’, summed up the general mood of public optimism about the new Prime Minister. Yet in 2010 threats of violence caused him to cancel book signings of his autobiography in England. Such a change in public opinion is largely explained by the decision that has perhaps permanently damaged his reputation. The consequences of his support for America's wish to overthrow Saddam Hussein in the Iraq War of 2003 have coloured all assessments of Blair's premiership. For his critics (often former supporters), his government's other achievements have all been overshadowed by the 'lies and spin' that led Britain into the front line of the world-wide ‘war on terror'.