Mr Tony Blair recast his cabinet last night after a historic election victory which he declared a mandate for reform of the public services and "an instruction to deliver".
The triumphant Prime Minister determined to hit the ground running on the first day of Labour's unprecedented second full term following a second landslide win which propelled Mr William Hague from the Conservative Party leadership.
Mr Hague confirmed his decision to quit the leadership after the decision of the British people to quit his party - leaving it with just one extra Commons seat four years on from its 1997 disaster.
The bald statistics of the Tory nightmare showed Labour with a final projected majority of 169.
Labour took 42 per cent of the votes cast on Thursday, compared to 33 per cent for the Conservatives and 19 per cent for the Liberal Democrats. This translated into 413 seats for Labour, against 166 for the Conservatives and a record 52 for the Liberal Democrats.
A jubilant Mr Charles Kennedy, widely praised for his personal campaign, said the results proved the Lib Dems could win seats "against the tide" and predicted his party could be one of "governance in the United Kingdom" within the next decade.
The victorious Mr Blair was generous to his vanquished opponent, wishing the departing Mr Hague good luck in the future and paying tribute to his "extraordinary stoicism and resilience in very difficult circumstances".
Mr Blair also struck a markedly modest tone when he faced the cameras after his mid-morning audience with Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace.
Doubtless reflecting on the record low turnout of just under 60 per cent, the Prime Minister identified health, education, transport and policing among the issues the electorate expected his government to address "profoundly" and speedily.
Before posing with his wife and family, including baby Leo, for the photograph which would adorn many of this morning's front pages, a sombre Mr Blair declared of Labour's historic achievement: "It is a mandate for reform and for investment in the future and it is also, very clearly, an instruction to deliver."
He continued: "I believe in the last four years we have laid foundations. I believe our victory in this election shows that the British people understand we have laid the foundations. But now is the time to build upon them."
Following a broad hint in his acceptance speech at his Richmond, Yorkshire count, Mr Hague then announced his resignation less than five hours later outside Conservative Central Office.
Mr Michael Portillo quickly emerged as the front runner - should he decide that he wants the job - at the start of an electoral process which is unlikely to be completed until late July or early August.
Ms Ann Widdecombe, Mr Iain Duncan Smith, Mr Frances Maude, and the senior backbencher, Mr David Davis, were all names in the frame last night, with the former chancellor, Mr Kenneth Clarke, fancied at least as a likely kingmaker in the succession stakes.
Mr Michael Heseltine opened the public inquest, saying the Conservatives had painted themselves into "an extremist position".
He said that policies on such issues as Europe and asylum had created "an image of a right-wing xenophobic party talking to itself in a very introspective way".