Tony Blair has deserved praise for his commitment to the building of democracies in parts of the wor

Most prime ministers arrive at 10 Downing Street battle-hardened. Not so Tony Blair. He had an easy ride to the top: the fortuitous arrival as a young MP; his swift emergence as a shadow Cabinet star; the man in the right place when John Smith died. For his first five years in government, this effortless success was sustained. He was blessed with a uniquely benign combination of circumstances: a strong economy, a large majority and a weak opposition.

He has never, till now, experienced political adversity. The last few weeks have been the worst by far since he entered politics 20 years ago. This is new, unpredictable terri-tory. The Blair government – witness the humiliation of the hunting vote or the reshuffle shambles – has lost direction. Public-service reform has failed, mainly because Chancellor Gordon Brown runs the domestic agenda. Cabinet ministers now habitually brief against No. 10 and some Cabinet ministers, like Peter Hain and Charles Clarke, defy Tony Blair to his face.