Don't go yet, Morris urges Blair

Sir Bill said Labour should not rush into a leadership election

Labour could end up in the "political wilderness" if Tony Blair stepped down so soon after the election, former union leader Sir Bill Morris has said.

Personalities should not be an issue at this stage, Sir Bill said.

The party should be concentrating on making sure private sector involvement in health and education does not risk the party's popularity, he added.

He told GMTV's The Sunday Programme Mr Blair "will do what is in the best interest of the party and the country".

But he does need to "demonstrate that he is listening" to the electorate in light of the government's reduced majority in parliament, Sir Bill said.

Slippery slopes

The former general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union said the government should limit the involvement of private firms in providing public services.

I do not think the British electorate would be forgiving if we were seen to be rushing to have an internal election Sir Bill Morris

The new Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt, has said the use of the private sector to carry out NHS operations will double in the next five years.

"There cannot be any magical figure but there has to be some recognition that at the end of the day nothing must be done that undermines the fundamental principle of the National Health Service free at the point of use," Sir Bill said.

"The needs of the many would determine that the National Health Service should be strengthened, not weakened."

Similar practices should be avoided in education, he said.

"Those are the slippery slopes that would derail the next government rather than issues around who is going to lead whom and when," Sir Bill told the programme.

Successor call

Mr Blair has said he will complete a full third term before leaving Downing Street, but last week faced calls from some backbenchers to quit immediately.

Sir Bill said he wanted to see a successor appointed 18 months to two years before the next election.

"I do not think the British electorate would be forgiving if we were seen to be rushing to have an internal election," he added.

"There is a small little rump within the Parliamentary Labour Party seeking to rush headlong into the political wilderness of opposition."

Last year, Sir Bill said the party had lost its "ideological compass" and needed to regain its radical reforming streak.