Timeline of the 2007 Labour Party leadership election (UK) facts for kids

Outgoing Leader Tony Blair

This is a story about how Tony Blair stopped being the leader of the Labour Party and the Prime Minister of the UK. It also covers how Gordon Brown became the new leader and Prime Minister. This timeline starts when Blair said he wouldn't lead Labour in another general election, and it ends when Gordon Brown took over.

Tony Blair's Time as Leader Nears Its End
Calls for Blair to Announce His Departure
The Campaign for Leadership Begins
Blair Asks Labour to Find a New Leader
Leadership Elections Take Place
Gordon Brown Becomes Prime Minister
See also

Tony Blair's Time as Leader Nears Its End

In September 2004, Tony Blair announced he would not try to be Prime Minister for a fourth time. Even so, the Labour Party won the general election in May 2005. They won for the third time in a row, but with fewer seats than before. Blair promised to stay on for a full term.

After the London bombings in July 2005, Labour and Blair became more popular. But by spring 2006, they faced big problems. There were issues with the government's department for home affairs, called the Home Office, not sending away people who were in the UK illegally. Also, many groups and parties said too many immigrants were coming into the UK.

People worried that a party called the British National Party might gain more support in the local elections in 2006. Because of this, many Labour MPs and supporters started asking Blair to say when he would leave. They wanted him to leave sooner rather than later.

Many politicians and newspapers guessed when Blair would resign. There was constant talk about other politicians like David Miliband or Charles Clarke possibly becoming leader. However, they all said they wouldn't run until Blair actually left. In the end, they decided not to stand for the leadership.

Calls for Blair to Announce His Departure

On 15 July 2006, John McDonnell was the first Labour MP to say he wanted to run for leader when Blair stepped down.

On 5 September 2006, 17 Labour MPs signed a letter asking Blair to resign. News reports said that up to 80 MPs were ready to sign. Later, important party members said that Tony Blair would not be Prime Minister at the next Labour Party meeting. On 6 September, Tom Watson, one of the MPs who signed the letter, resigned from his government job. Seven other MPs who helped ministers also resigned.

On 7 September, Jack Straw said he thought the Prime Minister would announce his leaving date in May 2007. Blair then said that the Labour Party meeting and the TUC meeting in September 2006 would be his last as party leader. Despite this, some people at the TUC meeting on 12 September shouted for him to resign right away.

On 23 September, John Hutton became the first minister in the government to say that Gordon Brown should have a serious challenger for Labour's leadership.

At the Labour Party meeting in 2006 on 25 September, Brown announced he wanted to be the leader. Three days later, at the same meeting, John Prescott said he would step down as Deputy Prime Minister when Blair resigned.

During a debate in Parliament on 15 November, Blair said the Conservative leader David Cameron was like a "flyweight" compared to a "heavyweight" for the next election. Many people thought this meant Blair was supporting Brown.

The Campaign for Leadership Begins

In January 2007, Brown talked about some of his ideas for Britain. He focused on citizen responsibility, education, helping Africa, and a "new style of politics." On 17 January, while visiting India, he spoke of a "new world order." He also supported India becoming a permanent member of the UN Security Council. On 21 March, he presented the government's budget for the year. This was his last budget as Chancellor of the Exchequer, the person in charge of the country's money.

On 16 January, Blair said he planned to attend a meeting of European Union leaders in June 2007 as Prime Minister. On 28 January, he said he was "not finished yet." He wanted to complete his plans for public services and lead Labour in local elections on 3 May.

On 17 January, John McDonnell, an MP with left-wing views, said he was getting close to having enough support to challenge for the leadership. Michael Meacher, another Labour MP, also announced he was thinking of running. On 22 February, he became the third Labour MP to say he wanted to be leader. However, some in the media doubted if either of them had much support from other MPs.

On 2 March, Jack Straw said he would not run for leader. On 20 March, the Labour Party's National Executive Committee (NEC) met to decide the rules for the upcoming leadership elections. On 13 April, Brown met US President George W. Bush for the first time. It was reported to be a friendly discussion. On 15 April, Brown told his rivals to "bring it on," meaning he was ready for a challenge.

David Miliband said on 17 April that he would not be a candidate for Labour leader or Deputy leader. He had always held this view. He later said he supported Brown in any leadership election. On 20 April, The Independent newspaper reported that many of Blair's closest friends wanted to unite the party and prevent anyone from challenging Gordon Brown. The next day, The Guardian reported that 217 MPs had already said they would support Gordon Brown.

On 27 April, Michael Meacher and John McDonnell agreed that whoever had fewer supporters after Blair resigned would step aside. This would give the other a better chance to get the 45 MPs needed to be on the ballot. On 1 May, Blair announced he would resign as Labour leader the following week. He expected the campaign for a new leader to last about seven weeks. He also said he supported Brown to take over as Labour leader and Prime Minister.

On 3 May, the day after Blair and Brown's tenth anniversary working together, elections were held across the UK. Labour had mixed results, gaining some seats in local elections but losing many in England to the Conservative Party.

On 3 May, Charles Clarke changed his mind about Brown, praising him publicly. He denied he was going to challenge for the leadership. In an interview, he said he could get enough nominations but that the Labour Party didn't want a contest. John Reid and John Hutton also announced their support for Brown. Reid also said he would step down as Home Secretary when Blair left.

On 9 May, in Blair's last Prime Minister's Questions, David Cameron described the Labour government as "The Living Dead." Blair ignored Cameron's teasing about the leadership change.

Blair Asks Labour to Find a New Leader

On 10 May, Blair announced in his local area of Sedgefield that he would step down as Prime Minister on 27 June 2007. He also said he would ask Labour's NEC to find a new party leader. Soon after, John Prescott announced he would step down as Deputy Prime Minister on the same day. He also told the NEC he was resigning as Deputy Leader.

Labour's NEC met on 13 May to set a timetable for the changeover. They confirmed Blair would remain leader until a new one was chosen. They gave potential candidates three days to submit their papers. Brown, Michael Meacher, and John McDonnell held a joint discussion in London.

On 10 May, John McDonnell and Michael Meacher delayed deciding who should run. They said their support levels were "too close to call." Michael Meacher later said he would not be a candidate because he didn't have enough MP support. He then said he would support John McDonnell to get a left-wing candidate on the ballot.

On 10 May, Peter Hain and Harriet Harman both announced they had more than the minimum number of nominations needed for the Deputy Leadership Election. They claimed 47 and 44 nominations respectively.

Leadership Elections Take Place

When nominations opened on 15 May, it was clear that Brown had far more than the minimum nominations needed. He had the support of about 282 MPs. John McDonnell only had 27 nominations, which was not enough to get on the ballot.

In the Deputy Leadership Race, Harriet Harman, Hazel Blears, Peter Hain, and Alan Johnson all had enough nominations. Jon Cruddas had 44 nominations and Hilary Benn had 34.

On 16 May, John McDonnell said that many of Brown's supporters were trying to stop the election from going to a full vote. Later that day, Brown secured 308 nominations, while John McDonnell had 29. Since there weren't enough MPs left to declare support for anyone else, Gordon Brown was set to become leader without a full vote. John McDonnell then accepted defeat. In the Deputy Leadership Race, Jon Cruddas and Hilary Benn got the needed nominations.

Nominations closed on 17 May. Brown had 313 nominations, and John McDonnell had 29. Harriet Harman (65 nominations), Hazel Blears (49 nominations), Peter Hain (51 nominations), Alan Johnson (73 nominations), Jon Cruddas (49 nominations), and Hilary Benn (47 nominations) all qualified for the Deputy leadership ballot.

At a meeting at the University of Warwick on 20 May, Brown was questioned about the 2003 War in Iraq. He said that even though mistakes were made, it was the right thing to do. Candidates for Deputy Leader talked about what was important for the next General Election. Jon Cruddas mentioned job insecurity. Hilary Benn said more housing was needed. Peter Hain called inequality "the biggest challenge." Alan Johnson focused on social mobility. Hazel Blears talked about education and jobs. Harriet Harman said Labour needed to "win back the trust" of the British people. Blears, Harman, and Benn all stressed the importance of party unity.

At a meeting in Bradford on 27 May, a council leader told Gordon Brown that the Iraq War still affected the party. Brown said he was happy to discuss the decision to remove the old government in Iraq. But he said his main focus now was on the next steps, with fewer UK troops there.

At a meeting in Leicester on 30 May, Deputy Leadership candidates discussed whether there should be special lists for ethnic minority candidates. Hazel Blears, Jon Cruddas, and Peter Hain supported this idea to increase the number of Black and Asian MPs. Alan Johnson and Hilary Benn were not sure if this was the best way. Harriet Harman did not comment directly but said more MPs from ethnic minorities were needed.

On 6 June, ballot papers were sent out to Labour MPs, Labour members of the European Parliament, Labour Party members, and members of unions linked to the party. These were for the Deputy Leader election.

At a meeting in Cardiff on 9 June, Brown said the Conservatives were confused about what they should say versus what they really believed. He accused them of being too focused on Grammar schools and wanting to get rid of the NHS. He again supported the decisions made about the war in Iraq, saying it was the right thing to do despite mistakes. He also promised to find more money to save jobs at Remploy, a company that helps disabled people. He also said promises made at the G8 summit to fight poverty in Africa would be kept.

At a youth meeting in Oxford on 10 June, Gordon Brown said Labour needed to change to involve young people more, including using online tools like MySpace. Hilary Benn criticized Bob Geldof and defended the recent G8 Summit. Hazel Blears focused on anti-social behavior. Peter Hain criticized the Home Secretary for talking too much about new police powers. Harriet Harman said the law needed to change so the government knew if terror suspects sent to other countries might be tortured. Jon Cruddas focused on claims that terror suspects were being secretly sent to places like Guantanamo Bay detention camp. Alan Johnson said testing in schools was important. Jon Cruddas agreed but felt it had gone too far.

The Deputy Leadership Ballot closed on 22 June. Brown was announced as leader at a special meeting on 24 June. In the Deputy Leadership election, Harriet Harman won by a small margin (50.4%) against Alan Johnson (49.6%). Jon Cruddas came in third. Harman had been behind until the final count of votes.

Gordon Brown Becomes Prime Minister

Tony Blair officially resigned as Prime Minister to the Queen on 27 June 2007. Then, the Queen asked Gordon Brown to form a new government. Unlike Blair, who had John Prescott as his Deputy Prime Minister, Brown decided not to give his new deputy, Harriet Harman, the title of Deputy Prime Minister.