Free Republic

Labour MPs have engaged in a fierce war of words over Prime Minister Tony Blair's future in Downing Street. Some backbenchers ignored appeals from Cabinet ministers to rally around Mr Blair, issuing new calls for him to quit No 10 sooner rather than later, but one colleague, former welfare reform minister Frank Field, hit back - branding their behaviour "unforgivable" and "treacherous". Foreign Secretary Jack Straw became the latest Cabinet minister to come to the Prime Minister's aid, insisting that Mr Blair was a "genius" who had been the Labour Party's "salvation". Mr Blair's position has been called into question...

While most national polls seem to suggest Labour Party candidate Tony Blair will be re-elected to a third term as Britain's prime minister in the upcoming May 5 elections, there are reasons to believe an upset may be afoot and that the rival conservative Tories have a decent chance to recapture 10 Downing Street. The Economist reports that most polls currently have Blair still "comfortably" ahead, with the most reliable pollster, ICM, giving Blair an 8-point lead. But, the magazine says, Labour "lost ground heavily during both the 1997 and 2001 elections," with its average poll rating falling off by...