Hazel Blears has declared that the prime minister has “full confidence in me”. Remember only yesterday Brown branded her guilty of “totally unacceptable behaviour” over expenses.
We’re wondering whether this is a first. Plenty of prime ministers have declared their full confidence in a minister before casting them off. But has any minister claimed to have the full confidence of a prime minister? We can’t think of another example. I can’t imagine it bodes well.
Here is the rest of Blears’ statement to the BBC.
I will be carrying on doing exactly that – doing my job. The prime minister has said I acted withion the rules. I have been in Salford politics and my community for 30 years, people know me and they know the kind of person I am. As I said and as the Prime Minister said very clearly, I acted within the rules
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey