So we have entered the phase of the long goodbye as we are still left guessing when the actual retirement date will be. As a result expect a flood of Tony Blair content over the next few months, here for instance are Blair’s ten defining moments.

My take on Blair has always been mixed. His firm stance on joining America in going to war in Iraq remains commendable and it was very clear evidence of how he had been able to reform Labour. From an unelectable far-left outfit indebted to union interests it has now become a modern center-left party that has been very successful in accessing the middle class vote. Yet at the same time I have always felt uncomfortable with the endless spin and Clinton-style power games that often appeared to have precedence over genuine and fundamentally sound policies.

Blair’s place in history is more than secured and his failure to satisfy the obsessive need to match Margaret Thatcher’s term in office will not affect that. The deeper question though will be how the Blair-Brown feuding will impact on Labour’s near term cohesiveness and strength to win the next election.