Be candid over Bush, Howard urges Blair

Michael Howard today urged Tony Blair to speak out publicly when he disagrees with President Bush on Iraq.

The Opposition leader called on Mr Blair to be a "candid friend" to the president by making clear British concerns at American mistakes in Iraq since the end of the war.

Although Mr Howard says the Anglo-American relationship should be the bedrock of British foreign policy, he believes it should not prevent Britain from voicing concerns.

His comments are the clearest sign so far that the Conservatives are looking to distance themselves from the Government on Iraq.

"There has been a serious lack of candour about Tony Blair's discussions with President Bush," Mr Howard writes in The Independent. He compared Mr Blair's approach with Margaret Thatcher's willingness to criticise publicly Ronald Reagan.

Mr Howard said Mrs Thatcher disagreed with the US invasion of Grenada in 1983 despite having the closest relationship in recent times between a British premier and a US president.