BRITAIN: Tony Blair flies to Washington today for talks with President Bush, leaving behind a domestic scene of personal and political embarrassments, fresh Labour rebellion and further evidence of "shambles" at the Home Office.
Iraq, Iran and the Middle East will dominate the British prime minister's White House meeting with the American president this evening, ahead of a speech tomorrow in which Mr Blair will speak of the need to inject "global values" into "updated institutions" like the United Nations to meet world challenges.
But as he prepared to travel, Mr Blair found himself confronted with plummeting Labour poll ratings, as his controversial education reforms again survived the Commons courtesy of Conservative support, while a reportedly furious home secretary, John Reid, was forced to apologise to the Commons speaker after figures he gave MPs on Tuesday about the foreign prisoners release fiasco proved to be wrong.
Mr Blair was in combative form during question time, clearly seeking to counter what Downing Street considered Mr Reid's excessive zeal before members of the Select Committee on Tuesday, when he launched an unprecedented attack on his own department and declared the immigration service "not fit for purpose." However, Conservative leader David Cameron - emboldened by a four-point lead in the latest ICM poll - insisted that, after nine years in power, Mr Blair should take "personal responsibility" for the "shambles" at the Home Office. And he neatly turned Mr Blair's praise for Chancellor Gordon Brown into a question about his reluctance to make way and allow Mr Brown takeover at Number 10.
Conservative backbenchers, meanwhile, sought to embarrass Mr Blair with questions about deputy John Prescott's reported refusal to give up his grace-and-favour residences after losing his departmental power in the recent reshuffle - and about wife Cheri Blair's judgment in signing a copy of the Hutton report into the death of government scientist Dr David Kelly for use in an auction to raise party funds.
During one of the darkest and most-threatening periods of the Blair premiership, Dr Kelly committed suicide in July 2003 after being named the likely source for a story on the BBC's Today programme claiming the government had "sexed up" the intelligence forming the basis of its dossier on Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
Following reports that a copy of Lord Hutton's report was signed by Mrs Blair and sold for £400 (€586) at a party fundraising event in Mayfair last week, Conservative MPs tabled a Commons motion describing this action as "in appalling bad taste, arrogant and crassly insensitive", condemning it for causing distress to Dr Kelly's family, and calling on Labour to apologise and donate the money raised to an appropriate charity.
MP Robert Goodwill made no mention of Mrs Blair when he asked the prime minister: "Given that the Hutton report was an inquiry about the death of a public servant, should copies signed by celebrities be auctioned to raise funds for a political party?"
Mr Blair in turn made no attempt to deny that the fund-raiser had taken place, replying: "I do not believe any offence to anyone was intended."
Two Labour MPs who organised the event, Chris Bryant and James Purnell, last night apologised and said they had not received any money in connection with the sale of the report and would not accept any.
After 69 Labour MPs opposed Mr Blair's flagship Education Bill on Tuesday night, yesterday's ICM poll for the Guardian showed the Conservatives pulling ahead of Labour on a range of issues including education and health.
One ray of comfort for Mr Blair was to see Mr Cameron's lead over Labour climb to nine points when respondents were asked how they might vote in an election with Mr Brown as leader.