TRIMDON, England – The Tony Blair era in Britain is ending.
The prime minister returned to his parliamentary district in northern England Thursday to announce that he will resign June 27 after a decade in office. During that time, he brokered peace in Northern Ireland and followed the U.S. to war in Afghanistan and Iraq. Blair will leave office as soon as his Labor Party elects a new leader.
Treasury Chief Gordon Brown is Blair’s likely successor.
Thursday’s announcement had been expected for nearly three years. Blair said in 2004 that his third term as prime minister would be his last.
He told supporters Thursday that 10 years at the helm was “long enough for me but more especially for the country.”