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| Welsh MPs 'tell Blair to resign' | Welsh MPs 'tell Blair to resign' |
| (21 minutes later) | |
| At least two Welsh Labour MPs, including one noted Tony Blair loyalist, have apparently joined the calls for the prime minister to quit. | |
| Rhondda MP Chris Bryant is understood to have helped co-ordinate a letter by a group of normally loyal MPs urging Mr Blair to go. | Rhondda MP Chris Bryant is understood to have helped co-ordinate a letter by a group of normally loyal MPs urging Mr Blair to go. |
| Mr Bryant would not confirm or deny this, and called it a "private matter". | Mr Bryant would not confirm or deny this, and called it a "private matter". |
| Anglesey MP Albert Owen confirmed he has written to Mr Blair, asking him to set a date for his departure. | Anglesey MP Albert Owen confirmed he has written to Mr Blair, asking him to set a date for his departure. |
| Birmingham Erdington MP Sion Simon, who is from Caernarfon, is also named as a source of the letter. | Birmingham Erdington MP Sion Simon, who is from Caernarfon, is also named as a source of the letter. |
| The letter from the 17 MPs, all elected in 2001, is set to add to the pressure on Mr Blair to name a departure date. | The letter from the 17 MPs, all elected in 2001, is set to add to the pressure on Mr Blair to name a departure date. |
| Mr Bryant said: "I'm not confirming or denying anything. If I had written a letter to the prime minister it would be a private one." | Mr Bryant said: "I'm not confirming or denying anything. If I had written a letter to the prime minister it would be a private one." |
| He also told BBC Wales that if he had sent the prime minister a private letter "then it's a private matter". Chris Bryant said any correspondence with Mr Blair was private | He also told BBC Wales that if he had sent the prime minister a private letter "then it's a private matter". Chris Bryant said any correspondence with Mr Blair was private |
| Mr Owen said that the current situation over the Mr Blair's future was unacceptable and that the prime minister should state publicly when he intends to stand down. | Mr Owen said that the current situation over the Mr Blair's future was unacceptable and that the prime minister should state publicly when he intends to stand down. |
| He declined to release the full text of his letter. | He declined to release the full text of his letter. |
| The prime minister has said he will step down before the next election but is refusing to give more details about his plans at this month's Labour conference in Manchester. | The prime minister has said he will step down before the next election but is refusing to give more details about his plans at this month's Labour conference in Manchester. |
| 'Substance not image' | 'Substance not image' |
| The BBC has not seen the contents of the correspondence sent to No 10 by members of the 2001 intake of MPs. | The BBC has not seen the contents of the correspondence sent to No 10 by members of the 2001 intake of MPs. |
| But a senior Cabinet source told BBC political editor Nick Robinson that it effectively calls on the prime minister to go. | But a senior Cabinet source told BBC political editor Nick Robinson that it effectively calls on the prime minister to go. |
| The source said the letter was seen for the first time on Monday and is likely to convince Mr Blair of the need to say something more about plans for his departure. | The source said the letter was seen for the first time on Monday and is likely to convince Mr Blair of the need to say something more about plans for his departure. |
| It is not yet been decided whether he will spell out that this is his final year in office, said the source. | It is not yet been decided whether he will spell out that this is his final year in office, said the source. |
| The prime minister's official spokesman said Mr Blair was interested in addressing the issues and knew that people would make up their own minds about what the government has achieved. | The prime minister's official spokesman said Mr Blair was interested in addressing the issues and knew that people would make up their own minds about what the government has achieved. |
| The spokesman added: "He's interested in substance not image." | The spokesman added: "He's interested in substance not image." |
| Mr Blair laughed off talk about his leadership as he began a speech in York on Tuesday about social exclusion. | Mr Blair laughed off talk about his leadership as he began a speech in York on Tuesday about social exclusion. |
| He joked about how he had visited healthcare workers who were having a meeting entitled "what leadership challenges remain for me". | He joked about how he had visited healthcare workers who were having a meeting entitled "what leadership challenges remain for me". |