Has Tony Blair shifted far right?

[WildEnergySupplier]

Tony Blair was always a warmonger with Iraq, but he seems to have gone full on far right / Reform now, criticising Starmer for not jumping in with Trump and the US on Iran.

He's saying we should have let them use our bases straight away and "show up" for America no matter what.

He also said Labour has made mistakes by spending more on welfare, focussing on Net Zero, increasing taxes on businesses..

Has he completely lost the plot? This sounds like proper far right policy to me.

I used to think Blair was centre-ground New Labour, but this feels like he's shifted hard right. In fact it's giving me proper far right / racist vibes.

Tony Blair is a bad person. He was always a bad person but in case there was ever room for doubt, he is now making it crystal clear. Signing up to Trump's "Board of Peace" for example is absolutely beyond the pale. When people show you who they are believe them.

But that’s kind of the point… we need to make decisions based on what’s best for the country rather than dismissing sensible suggestions because we don’t like who’s saying them. Just because we might not agree with Blair’s stance on wmd / Gaza doesn’t mean he’s wrong about the need for economic growth. We need rational, evidence based policies not childish personality-based name calling. It’s a country, not a student union.

’Far right’?! You’re kidding, right?

Has this term been thrown about so much by those on the far left about anyone who isn’t far left themselves, that it’s now meaningless? I would say so.

Blair’s a centrist. But more than that, he’s a pragmatist. He’s primarily interested in what works. What gets things done. What gets us 80% of a good outcome instead of tilting at the windmill of aiming at 100% of it, despite knowing it won’t work and ending up with none of it.

I don’t agree with him on everything, but he’s accurately diagnosed the cause of the malaise in the current government, and rightly warns about the UK sliding further into decline if fingers aren’t pulled out pronto.

Frankly, a focus on ‘what works,’ rather than ideology, is what the country’s crying out for.

So I've also been puzzling this one and come to the following conclusion:

Being left wing is all about being nice and fairer. So if one person makes a £500k a year and 5 make £50k and four make zero then surely it's fairer to share it all out equally. The right will counter this with reality that the one on £500k will simply reduce their hours, retire early or leave the country.

Equally it's "nicer" to let in more people fleeing poverty in their countries and provide them with basic welfare and health. The right again will counter with reality that who's going to pay for this and what about the strain on infrastructure, healthcare and housing?

The left wants to focus on the ideals of being nice and fairer, so if you challenge this with reality then obviously you must not be a nice or fair person - or alternatively a far right fascist racist Nazi.

You get payed based on your value, could someone who 18 and works at a fish and chip shop run, Microsoft or apple? No, thats why he gets payed less than the ceo of apple. Could he run Apple or Microsoft? Yes, with lots of effort and years of experience.

Would you pay your gardener a ton of money to do a house rewire instead of paying more to a electrician? No

You get payed based on your value.

A bin man get payed a good wage for a simple job because its high demand.

A ceo gets payed for his experience.

Why should someone who doesnt work be payed the same as someone who does work?

Why would someone with no experience be paid the same as someone with mountains of it?

I hope this is rage bate 😂

I think you think you made some really great points here.

Calling those one disagrees with “far right” has become the weapon of choice of the far left. They use it to close down the debate.

OP, I guess is finding her voice and MN is an anonymous platform that allows her to explore and voice echo’s, inarticulately, of whatever SM she has been reading.

Little did she know that MNetters are more informed, curious and balanced.

There is definitely some level of far right politics / activism evident in western cultures but Tony Blair is not it.

The far left use grievance positioning and emotional, moralistic rhetoric in order to flatten engagement into really important matters. Which pisses people, who are seeing reality all around them, off.

And so we see the ascendancy of so called populist politics and OP can then sit in her comfort zone and brand everyone “far right”.

Yes apart from the party that gave us the highest and perhaps the most damaging immigration, in terms of integration and culture, was the Conservatives, over 4.1m let in over 2 or 3 years (almost all low skilled or dependents) causing exactly the strains on health and housing you say the Left cause.... yet at the same time, this huge increase in immigration had no affect on UK skills shortages.

The Conservatives also increased Welfare from £221bn in 2020/21 to £297bn in 2023/24..... but even more, took taxation levels to the highest seen in 75 years.

What party on the "left" has suggested taking the pay of someone on 500k and dividing it out to people who earn nothing?

I think you just imagined that....

What party on the "left" has suggested taking the pay of someone on 500k and dividing it out to people who earn nothing?

That's what you want them to do though

No i don't, you just made that up, its what the far right do.... 😆

Do you think Tony Blair is far-right?

”far left, far right, left of far centre right”. It is all meaningless these days. Not least because people like you cast anything which is not socialist as ‘far right’. Laughable really.

No, believing we should maintain energy independence is not “far right”.

No, believing our country should exercise control over who can move here is not “racist”.

No, believing we should not endlessly fund the lives of people with minor social anxiety issues does not make you a “fascist”.

Absolutely. Traditionally, those to the Left were (very much past tense) seen as people who were tolerant, and who wanted to give all sides a fair hearing. In contrast, Conservatives were seen as tougher in their opinions and judgmental about others.

Today that sort of natural Left a lot of us felt, has totally disappeared. Often, and we see it on MN most days, people who call themselves left wing or Labour supporters, are at the front of the queue to aggressively shut down debates on, and to restrict freedom of speech. They do not tolerate views which aren't there own, and everyone else is wrong.

They are supposedly great haters of bigotry but often speak of (for example) white people, or holders of balanced political views, or people who criticise benefits culture, or sex realists, or Jewish people, in the most bigoted manner imaginable.... as if these people were no better than fascists. As we see on this thread, very very clearly.

The intolerance and bigoted view of the new left is / are truly shocking.

All of what you want are Labours current policies.

fwiw try getting benefits for "minor anxiety issues" doesn't happen, despite what Farage or Badenoch say.

Criticising Blair doesn't make some one intolerant or bigoted and neither does it make it Blair "far right" he is an opportunist, doubtless looking to became relevant again.

But accusing posters of all of this, might be considered an attempt at shutting down debate?

I find it quite funny that many now supporting Blair on his latest intervention, who not so long ago, were calling for him to stand trial for war crimes......

I guess any moral stand point goes out the window when it comes to criticising Starmer/Labour.

Do you mean war-mongering is engaged in deliberately by hawks because war can stimulate the economy?
I did not know that.

Ah of course, out comes DARVO..

Tony Blair will say anything that promotes Tony Blair, whatever that is. He is a business man, with a big bank account. His job is to make money for himself and his sponsors. Now we know what his sponsors want him to say.

There is a huge world between what Blair will spout out (for money, of course) and what is in the interest of the British citizen and UK.
So, why is anyone wasting any time listening to this man?

Equal shares would be a wonderful concept if human nature wasn’t involved. ‘The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money’.

Agreed. And it's not just "far right" it's a few others issues as well. Think: transphobia, racism etc.

It's been said I think, that if you are over 50 and still on the left..you basically just haven't matured enough to think for yourself.

Again, it is possible to agree with some things a person says and disagree with others. Even the most abhorrent people are right sometimes.

Remind me again who increased UK taxation to the highest levels for 75 years.....

Over 14 years the Tories took debt from 67% in 2010 to 100% of GDP in 2024... whilst at the same time, running down every aspect of British society, including our Defences, giving us inflation of 11% (food inflation of 30%) unemployment of 8% and trebling energy costs, also failed to commission any new Nuclear power stations or any plans to address our reliance on fossil fuels or resiliance.

The 'Right certainly did run out of our money.

Oh dear. As @Sandysandybeaches said:

Sandysandybeaches · Yesterday 22:51
But that’s kind of the point… we need to make decisions based on what’s best for the country rather than dismissing sensible suggestions because we don’t like who’s saying them. Just because we might not agree with Blair’s stance on wmd / Gaza doesn’t mean he’s wrong about the need for economic growth. We need rational, evidence based policies not childish personality-based name calling. It’s a country, not a student union.

I feel the same way about Blair. I admire his ability to see clearly what can be done in a practical way - his pragmatism.

Like you I don't agree with everything he has ever done or said but I voted for him in 97 and I'd vote for him again if he came back into politics.

Do i think he's far right, of course not. He is the ultimate practical centrist.

Fair enough, i voted for him in 1997, however, i wouldn't again should he ever return to front line politics.

He has proven himself to be the ultimate opportunist and there are plenty of principled people across the political spectrum without listening to him.

...and in any case, the UK isn't slipping into further decline.