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Peter Mandelson warn Tony Blair not allowed Gordon Brownsupporters to destroy laborNewly released government documents shed light on the internal campaign operations of the 2005 election.
relationship between Mr Blair and his Chancellor Fall 2004 approaching tipping point labor Gearing up for a historic third consecutive election victory, Mr Brown and his allies believed the then prime minister had reneged on a promise to stand down by the end of the year. party He took over for a second term.
The controversial pledge was part of the so-called Granita Agreement, in which Brown agreed to step aside following the death of former Labor leader John Smith in 1994, giving Blair a clear advantage in the Labor leadership.
Documents released by the National Archives in Kew, west London, show that Mandelson, who has long been one of Blair’s closest allies, warned him that such a tense relationship with the prime minister needed to be handled carefully during the campaign.
Before moving to Brussels to take up the role of UK EU commissioner, the former cabinet minister said one of the challenges was to “get the job done” [Gordon Brown’s] People can be included without giving them veto power or scope for internal dismantling”.
He said that while Mr Brown hoped to inherit a healthy Commons majority when he eventually took over, he did not want Mr Blair to receive the honour.
“A big problem will be you personally. The media will want to put more pressure on you. Next door [Mr Brown] They will want the majority but not you to do well,” he wrote.
Eventually, the two reconciled their differences enough to campaign together, with Blair even buying the Chancellor an ice cream at an event. But tensions soon resurfaced after Labor returned to power.
Mr Mandelson – who later served as UK ambassador to the US under Sir Keir Starmer’s government Resigned over ties to Jeffrey Epstein Documents show he also stressed the need to attract “the so-called ‘left’ media” following Britain’s painful experience of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
To that end, he said Alastair Campbell, who resigned as No. 10 communications officer amid controversy over the government’s notorious weapons of mass destruction dossier, should be kept in the background.
“You have to realize that you need to create reasons to get them back on side. Avoid things that will irritate them (so be careful with the AC – he is indispensable, but must also be invisible),” he said.
Documents also show officials encouraged Blair to strip deputy prime minister of his post John Prescott Following the election, he held departmental responsibilities for communities and local government.
Mr Prescott rejected the move, fearing he would be accused by the Conservatives of not finding the right job.
However, cabinet secretary Sir Andrew Turnbull fears he may keep some department members on hold, leading to more administrative chaos in Whitehall.
“I understand that the Deputy Prime Minister has suggested that if he leaves the current department he should still take with him the Housing and Planning portfolio. I also understand that you are resisting this. I strongly urge you to continue to do so,” he wrote.
“The worst outcome is for him to split the department again. I think it’s better to keep him where he is rather than put artificial boundaries in place.”
As a result, Blair waited another year before taking action, ultimately removing Prescott from his entire department as he was politically weakened by the news of his affair with his secretary.
Sir Andrew also harshly criticized the abilities of junior ministers, saying they needed more training if they were to do their jobs effectively.
He wrote: “If you consider yourself a football manager with no money for transfers and relying on academy graduates, then you have reason to worry.”