LONDON : British Prime Minister Tony Blair sacked his home secretary and shifted other key ministers in a ruthless cabinet reshuffle Friday, one day after voters punished his scandal-hit Labour Party in local elections.
Charles Clarke, a combative figure who had been under fierce pressure over his office's failure to deport more than 1,000 foreign prisoners, was replaced as interior minister by John Reid, a key Blair ally who had been in charge of defence.
In the biggest-ever culling of his inner circle, Blair appointed Margaret Beckett as foreign secretary, the first woman to hold the post.
Beckett replaces Jack Straw, who becomes the leader of the House of Commons where his key job will be to steer Blair's controversial public sector reforms through parliament.
Other changes were announced at defence, education and trade and industry, while Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, who had admitted an extra-marital affair with a secretary, was stripped of many of his responsibilities.
Analysts said the reshuffle was a clear attempt by Blair to reassert his authority and staunch Labour's slide in the opinion polls a year after he led the party to its third straight general election victory.
"It's a powerful symbol that Blair intends to carry on," said Tony Travers, a political scientist from the London School of Economics.
Clarke was by far the most important casualty of the reshuffle, which was triggered by Thursday's municipal council elections in England in which Labour suffered its biggest losses since Blair took power nine years ago.
Clarke said he disagreed with his sacking decision despite his department's blunders over the fate of more than 1,000 foreign criminals, who should have been considered for deportation after serving their sentences in British jails but were instead released back into the community.
"The prime minister, as is his right and responsibility, has made the judgment that my continued occupation of the post of home secretary is likely to stand in the way of continued reform that remains necessary," he said.
"Although I do not agree with that judgment, I entirely accept his right to make it," he told reporters.
Prescott kept his title of deputy prime minister but lost responsibilities for housing and urban affairs.
Geoff Hoon, outgoing leader of the House of Commons, was named minister of state for Europe but, unusually, will keep his seat at the cabinet table.
The other changes included Des Browne as defence secretary, Alan Johnson as education secretary and Alistair Darling in charge of trade and industry.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown, Blair's heir apparent, admitted that Thursday's election results, in which Labour lost more than 250 council seats, were a "warning shot" from a frustrated electorate.
"We have got to (resolve our problems) competently, efficiently, and we have got to show in the next few days -- not just the next few weeks -- that we have sorted these problems out," he told BBC radio.
"The renewal of the Labour Party must start now."
Labour lost control of 16 town halls in London and other parts of England, and more than 250 council seats of the 4,361 up for grabs. The main opposition Conservative Party made strong gains.
The BBC projected that, had Thursday's elections taken place across Britain rather than just parts of England, the Conservatives would have won 40 percent of the vote.
The smaller opposition Liberal Democrats would have gained 27 percent and Labour 26 percent.
Political analysts in Britain regard local elections -- where the biggest issues are often neighbourhood policing, swimming pools and rubbish collection -- as mid-term snapshots of a government's popularity.
"I think this shows the Conservative Party is broadening its appeal, that it's attracting new voters and I think we see a Labour Party that is in some sort of serious meltdown," said the Tories' youthful leader, David Cameron.
Adding to the humiliation, Labour's earlier iron grip on the working-class east London council of Barking and Dagenham weakened as the far-right British National Party scooped up 11 seats with its anti-immigrant platform. - AFP /dt
