For the first time, 31 declassified letters and notes from Mr Blair to President Bush have been released to the public, casting new light on the build-up to the Iraq war as well as its aftermath.

They show the closeness of the relationship between the two men, with Mr Blair praising the Republican president as “brilliant”, and planning the war in secret for eight months before Mr Blair got the backing of his Cabinet and Parliament.

Mr Blair told his counterpart that the goal of the war was to create “the true post-cold war world order”.