OMB News, BlairAnnounces Abolition of Elections

Advice from the police

Mr Blair said that the police had advised him that elections would be dangerous. "They would divert attention from the war on terror", he said. "If the public chose a new government, that would be a victory for terrorism. We must not take that chance. Holding elections would be contrary to the strong advice given to us by our security services and our police, and I am simply not prepared to do it."

Owen was Tony Blair’s Economic Affairs Private Secretary, in 10 Downing Street, in 1999-00. He was responsible for microeconomic policy, including trade and industry, the knowledge economy, environment, transport, regional policy, education, employment, science, and modernizing government....

From 1988 to 1997, Owen was an official at H M Treasury. His roles included being Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, coordinating the public spending system, forecasting the world economy, forecasting and analysis of domestic labour markets, and medium term macroeconomic policy analysis. He also set up the UK Government’s first website...