Death of British soldier comes at bad time for Blair

BRITISH Prime Minister Tony Blair yesterday defended his decision to go to war with Iraq as the decision to invade the battered country came back to haunt him in a final 48 hours of frantic election campaigning.

His plans to focus on Labour’s record on the economy continued to be overshadowed by the death of Guardsman Anthony Wakefield in Amarah, southern Iraq.

His estranged widow Ann Toward blamed Mr Blair for his death, forcing him and Chancellor Gordon Brown on to the defensive as they battled to convince wavering voters that supporting any other party would let the Tories into No 10.