THE BRITISH Labour leader, Mr Tony Blair, warned his party candidates to be prepared for an early general election yesterday as "anything could happen" because the Tories were "in a state of panic."
Speaking to prospective parliamentary candidates in London, Mr Blair predicted that the general election could be as early as March 20th, just 56 days away.
"They are in such a state that anything could happen to bring the general election forward. Mr Major is in a curious position of both rearing to go and wanting to wait until May 1st. I think the country is tried of waiting and I think the country is tired of the Tones," he said.
Accompanied by his deputy, Mr John Prescott, the Labour leader stressed that the electorate must trust the party and understand all their policies.
"How we will offer jobs and hope to our young people, how we will improve our education system at every level, how we will save our NHS from the Tory reforms, how we will put power in the hands of the people, how we will lead in Europe instead of being sidelined, humiliated and pushed around in Europe. How we will lead Britain into the future," he pledged.
Mr Blair told the candidates it was their role to explain the party's stance on tax to the electorate, stressing that the decision to freeze income tax did not mean that they would be unable to fulfil their policies.
"This is the kind of nonsense that the left of centre in Britain has had hanging round its neck for too long. And it is one of the reasons why we have been out of power for so long. The 1997 tax bombshell has been defused," he stated.
Explaining that New Labour stood for "save and invest" not "tax and spend", Mr Blair said this meant the party would prioritise their policies and examine ways to save money.
"This Tory government is rapidly becoming a pathetic spectacle. It is damaging to Britain and damaging to the British people. We are ready and waiting for a general elections and the chance to convince the British people that it is time to look forward and vote for a party that will provide strong leadership for Britain in the future," he declared.
Mr Blair was speaking as speculation mounted at Westminster that the Prime Minister would opt for March 20th as polling day after the government conceded control of the key Commons committee examining the budget.
The Tories agreed they should only have the same number of MPs on the committee as the Opposition parties, leaving the government's vital financial programme open to defeat.
In any vote where the parties were evenly balanced, the committee chairman would be obliged to vote for the status quo, posing a risk to government amendments.
Any major victory for the opposition on the Finance Bill would spark a vote of confidence in the government which could prompt an early general election.
With fresh cracks appearing in the Cabinet's stance on a single currency yesterday, Mr Blair used Prime Minister's question time to turn up the pressure on the Government, renewing his call for a swift election.
And the Ulster Unionists joined forces with nationalist parties in a threat to oppose Budget plans to double air passenger duty.