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Tony Blair Biography
Anthony Charles Lynton ‘Tony’ Blair was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on May 6, 1953. Blair graduated in Jurisprudence from St. John's College, Oxford after an undistinguished mediocre career best known for his ability to play the guitar for a rock group. A Protestant himself, Blair married Cherie Booth, a Roman Catholic in 1980. They have four children. |
Blair entered politics in 1975, joined the Labor Party, and was elected MP for Sedgwick in Durham. On July 6, 1983, he made his maiden speech to the House of Commons upholding socialist values. His rise in the Labour Party, though in opposition, was meteoric and he became the party leader in 1994. Blair established himself as a reformer and modernizer of the party. At the general election of 1997, he led the Labor Party to a landslide victory after 18 years in opposition.
As Prime Minister, Blair established the Welsh and Northern Irish assemblies and the Scottish parliament. He orchestrated the Good Friday Agreement that initiated the Northern Ireland peace process, and introduced a minimum wage.
Blair was swift to align the UK with the US in the wake of the September 11 attacks. In the teeth of opposition, Britain became the most important ally both militarily and politically in the war on terror and subsequent invasions of Iraq.
The second invasion of Iraq was chief amongst several other controversies that blighted his third term in office. As casualties of the war began to mount, Blair was accused of misleading the British people into committing Britain to the war. His popularity waned rapidly and on 27 June 2007 he tendered his resignation to the Queen passing on the mantle to his successor Gordon Brown.
Tony Blair is the only prime minister in the Labor Party to have led the party to three consecutive general election victories. He is also the longest serving Labor Prime Minister in British history.
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