As Tony Blair prepares to deliver a speech marking the 20th anniversary of his becoming Labour leader, Michael Crick asks him why he is in London and not in the Middle East.

Tony Blair’s spokesperson sent the following statement to Channel 4 News –

“It’s untrue to suggest that Mr Blair has not been paying sufficient attention to the situation in Gaza and the Middle East.

“Mr Blair has been, and continues to be, fully involved. He’s been working intensively with senior figures in the region, where he has spent the last 10 days, and other leaders with an interest in building a framework for a cease fire. He actually flew back into Britain from the Middle East in the early hours of this morning so that he could fulfil his commitment to the family of the late Philip Gould to speak at an event named in his honour.”