Broken Vows

When Tony Blair became prime minister in May 1997, he was, at forty-three, the youngest person to hold that office since 1812. With a landslide majority, his approval rating was 93 per cent and he went on to become Labour's longest-serving premier. On his first election campaign, Blair had promised that 'New Labour' would modernize Britain, freeing it from sleaze, special interests and government secrecy. He vowed to give priority to social justice and equal opportunity for all.

So what went wrong? The invasion of Iraq was particularly controversial and unleashed public fury against a government accused of not being open and honest in its march to war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Alastair Campbell's 'dodgy' dossiers about WMDs sparked outrage, but did the contamination of New Labour's spin stretch beyond the wars?

What is the truth behind Blair's claims of rebuilding Britain's schools, hospitals and welfare services? Why did he covertly open the doors to mass...