The end of June this year marks the end of one of the most contentious eras in British Politics with the departure of Tony Blair from Downing Street when he leaves the post of Prime Minister. Looking back over his ten years in office, there are so many achievements that he would like to be remembered for, but only one word will come to dominate his legacy – Iraq.

Blair was the Prime Minister who took the UK into a war that the public did not support, and this is one of the greatest pities of his time in office, and perhaps the biggest stumbling block to him being remembered for all the good work he did while he was in charge.

Back in 1997, when he took office for the first time, he was a fresh faced and idealistic politician, the youngest premier in history, and someone who seemed to embody the cool Britannia ethos that was dominating the country at the time. He brought a new era of hope to the people of the UK, and on many of his promises he has delivered in spades.

His government has reduced waiting times in hospitals, improved schools, and invested in making huge changes to public transport that have modernised the UK.

The country is in better shape now than when he arrived, that is for sure, although it may have got better anyway. Aside from the veiled threats of terror that occasionally surface, the UK is still a great place to live for a large portion of the population, and most people now live a better life than they did when the labour party came to power.

Blair has done a good job, and if he had gone 5 years ago at the height of his powers, before Iraq loomed, and before the various accusations of sleaze that have been generated by the resentment people feel about the war, he would have been remembered as one of our greatest leaders. When he goes in a week or so, it will take a long time for his legacy to be cleaned of the smears of war.