Tony Blair biography

In 1982, Blair tried but failed to land a seat in Parliament for the Beaconsfield District. He did however, continue to impress the Labour Party by working hard and proving his charisma and capability. In 1983, Blair earned a seat in Parliament for the Sedgefield District near Durham, where he had spent most of his childhood.

When Conservative Margaret Thatcher was reelected as prime minister in 1983,

Neil Kinnock was made leader of the opposition Labour Party. Kinnock proceeded to promote Blair through the ranks. From 1984 to 1988, Blair served as the front bench spokesman on treasury and economic affairs for the Labour Party. He also held a position as spokesman on trade and industry in 1987. In 1988, Blair rose to the shadow cabinet (also known as shadow front bench or shadow ministry) in the position of shadow secretary of energy. Under the leader of the opposition, the shadow cabinet is an alternative to the established government's cabinet. For every member of the established government's cabinet, there is a person in the shadow cabinet who shadows him or her and critically analyzes his or her policies and decisions. It was Blair's job to shadow the British government’s secretary of energy, Nigel Lawson. In 1992, Blair was appointed to the position of shadow home secretary.

In 1992, Kinnock resigned as leader of the Labour Party and was succeeded by John Smith. When Smith died of a heart attack in 1994, Tony Blair was elected leader of the Labour Party, achieving the distinction of the organization's youngest leader to date. While in office, Blair advocated policies to cut taxes, deter crime, boost trade and increase the power of local government. Blair described his new vision for Great Britain as a nation "where people succeed on the basis of what they give to their country." He would remain in his role of Labour Party leader until 2007, instituting several reforms—including a new "one person, one vote" system for electing party leadership.

In Recent Years

Following his resignation, Tony Blair remained active in public affairs, serving as quartet representative to the Middle East and a representative of the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia to prepare Palestine for statehood.

In 2007, he created the Tony Blair Sports Foundation, the mission of which is to "increase childhood participation in sports activities, especially in the North East of England, where a larger portion of children are socially excluded, and to promote overall health and prevent childhood obesity." In 2008, he formed the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, a nonprofit group that "promotes respect and understanding about the world’s religions through education and multi-faith action." In 2009, he established Tony Blair Associates, an organization providing pro bono consulting on "political and economic trends and governmental reform."

In 2011, Blair was presented with the Liberty Medal by former president Bill Clinton. The following year, the Kaula Lumpur War Crimes Commission held a mock tribunal finding Blair and Bush guilty of crimes against peace and humanity for their 2003 involvement in the Iraq War.