Portrait of the Week – 1 May 2004

Fifty-two former ambassadors, high commissioners and governors criticised Mr Tony Blair, the Prime Minister, for supporting an American policy in Iraq that was ‘doomed to failure’. ‘The conduct of the war in Iraq has made it clear that there was no effective plan for the post-Saddam settlement,’ their open letter said. It also spoke of ‘one-sided and illegal’ policies over Israel, which meant ‘abandoning the principles which for nearly four decades have guided international efforts to restore peace in the Holy Land’. The letter was co-ordinated by Mr Oliver Miles, a former ambassador to Libya, and its supporters included Sir Crispin Tickell. There was a certain amount of grumbling among members of the Cabinet because Mr Blair had announced without their approval the referendum on the European Union constitution. In a speech on immigration, Mr Blair said: ‘We have begun a top-to-bottom analysis of the immigration system.’ Mr David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, is to introduce a Bill in the autumn making identity cards, costing at least £35, compulsory before 2013; 10,000 people began trials of biometric cards immediately.