Translated material
Sheri won't run to her neighbor's
Tony Blair said goodbye to the party
According to an old English joke, a wife can only make her husband a millionaire if he is a billionaire. An event that took place at the annual Labor party conference in Manchester showed how a wife can inflict not only material, but also serious political damage on her husband.Cherie Blair, the wife of the British Prime Minister, almost played this destructive role. At the moment when Finance Minister Gordon Brown (who is tipped as Tony Blair's successor), speaking to the conference delegates on Monday, confessed his love and fidelity to her husband, Mrs. Blair left the hall and allegedly contemptuously said as she walked: “A complete lie!”
Sheri's unflattering remark reached the ears of Bloomberg journalist Carolyn Lotter, who immediately ran these words on the news feed. A huge scandal broke out, which could well lead to a government crisis and serious discord in the ruling party. On the sidelines, Tony Blair's inner circle has long expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the Minister of Finance is in a hurry to “push” the prime minister out of his chair.
Brown wanted to use the party conference to ease tensions with Tony Blair. He said it was a "huge privilege to work with Labour's most popular leader and Prime Minister". It was then that Blair’s wife made a poisonous remark, blurring the impression of the finance minister’s subtly calculated step. Sheri is not just the first lady, she is one of the most famous and respected lawyers in the UK, a member of the country's High Court. Not only her husband, but the entire Labor Party listens to her opinion.
In the end, the culprit of the scandal herself appeared before the journalists, declaring: “Honestly, guys, I don’t want to disappoint you, but I didn’t say that, and these words do not express my opinion.” Formally, the conflict was resolved, but, as British newspapers write, “Sheri’s dislike for Brown has long been no secret” and the first lady “found a clever way to disrupt his show.” Only Tony Blair himself, who spoke at the party conference yesterday afternoon, could save the situation and restore peace and trust in the top echelon of Labour.
Having begun his speech with gratitude to the party and the conference delegates, he then thanked his family, which, according to him, provided him with invaluable support throughout the years of his premiership. “I especially want to thank Sheri,” said the prime minister and, after waiting for the laughter that swept through the hall, he joked: “At least I can be sure that she will not run away from me with a neighbor.” The neighbor is Gordon Brown, whose residence is located on Downing Street next to the prime minister's house.
Tony Blair paid tribute to his successor: “New Labor would never have become a reality and Labour's three general election victories would never have been achieved without Gordon Brown. He's a wonderful man, a wonderful servant of his country, and that's the truth." However, the prime minister did not dwell on this topic. He wanted to say too many important and serious things in his last address to fellow party members as their leader.
Having admitted that he was going to leave his posts as Labor leader and head of the cabinet for the foreseeable future (but without giving a date for this event), Blair called on his party comrades to close ranks and win a fourth parliamentary election in a row: “I will experience change in the coming months, which I have worked so hard on these past years. And I will help build a united party with a powerful platform - to secure a fourth successive election victory that will enable us to continue to change Britain for the better."
Tony Blair recalled his government's achievements in education, health care and the fight against crime. He could not ignore the sore subject of immigration for the country. Noting that immigrants provide invaluable assistance to the country's economy, Blair emphasized that the flow of visitors must be strictly controlled by the state: “Otherwise, a situation may arise when immigrants will be greeted not with open arms, but with fear.”
Blair also defended his foreign policy, which has drawn criticism both at home and abroad. “Terrorism did not arise as a result of the war in Afghanistan or Iraq,” the prime minister emphasized. “Nearly 3 thousand people, including 60 Britons, died in the New York shopping center before these wars.” “Terrorism is not our fault, we did not create it,” said Blair, “it is not the result of our foreign policy, but the attack of extremists on our way of life.” The prime minister promised that until his departure he would make efforts to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians. “I may not succeed, but I will try. Peace in the Middle East will be the defeat of terrorism."
At the end of the speech, which lasted more than an hour, those gathered gave their outgoing leader an unprecedented 8-minute ovation. When asked by a Vremya Novostey correspondent how Blair's speech made her feel, Kent delegate Jenny McKenzie said without hesitation: “A feeling of disappointment that a politician of such talent and caliber is leaving leadership. In the entire 100-year history of the party, Labor has never had such a brilliant leader and, I’m afraid, it won’t be any time soon.”