Blair’s once sharp crisis-prevention skills have mostly eluded him over the last six months. The government has been leap-frogging from one mess to another, including a flu epidemic that shamed the National Health Service and a botched attempt to prevent a renegade Labourite from being elected London mayor. Blair’s problem is “the satisfaction gap”–the yawning distance between promises and real-world improvements. Last week’s Gallup poll showed Labour’s lead over the Tories cut almost in half over the last year. Does it matter? Labour is still likely to win the next general election, which could come as early as a year from now. But the Blair government will now be subjected to the “Where’s the beef?” test. The new baby may be gurgling at Blair, but no one else is.
