Changes
Spelling/Grammar Check, typos fixed: privitisation → privatisation, , → ,
A combination of the Labour Party's newfound moderation, Blair's personal popularity and the deep unpopularity of the Conservatives under [[John Major]] resulted in a landslide victory for Blair and his party in the 1997 general election, ending 18 years of Conservative government. Blair led Labour to easy triumphs in the 2001 and 2005 elections.
While the Labour Party still carries the old tag of a "socialist party", Blair eradicated most elements of socialism and committed his government to capitalism and private ownership. Blair coined the phrases "[[New Labour]]" and "[[The Third Way]]" to distinguish his own pro-business policies from the more collectivist platform of his leftist predecessors. He was often attacked by left-wing members of the Labour Party for "selling out" to conservative thinking, particularly in his support for privitisation privatisation and cooperating closely in the foreign policy of the United States in the [[Iraq War]]. On the other hand, some of Blair's policies were liberal by American standards: they have included increases in taxation, increases in government spending (particularly on public schools and Britain's [[National Health Service|public healthcare system]]), the introduction and subsequent increases of a minimum wage, and support for equal rights for gay people.
==Blair's policies==
* Hill, Paul T. "Lessons from Blair's School Reforms." ''Policy Review,'' No. 131, 2005. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5012121395 online edition]
* Jones, Nicholas. ''Sultans of Spin: The Media and the New Labour Government''. (2000)
* King, Anthony, ed. ''New Labour Triumphs: Britain at the Polls.'' (1998) , 259pp. political science [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=87571616 online edition]
* King, Anthony, ed. ''Britain at the Polls: 2001'' (2001)
* Needham, Catherine. "Brand Leaders: Clinton, Blair and the Limitations of the Permanent Campaign." ''Political Studies'' (2005) 53:343-61. Issn: 0032-3217 Fulltext: [[Ebsco]]
