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Tony Blair has held private talks with Nick Clegg ahead of the former Labour prime minister’s return to frontline politics with a new centre-ground campaign.

Mr Blair has been courting the senior europhile Liberal Democrats over the past few weeks in an attempt to bolster support for his new organisation, which is designed to counter Brexit.

Mr Clegg, the Lib-Dem’s EU spokesman, is the latest high-profile politician Mr Blair has “taken soundings” from according to a party source, and follows a recent discussion with former Chancellor George Osborne on Britain quitting the European Union.

The former Lib-Dem leader and Mr Blair held a private meeting earlier this month. However Mr Blair’s approach to current Lib-Dem leader Tim Farron was rebuffed, and he allegedly rejected the offer of a face-to-face meeting with Mr Blair.

The Lib-Dem source said that while Mr Clegg welcomed Mr Blair with open arms, Mr Farron gave him “short-shrift” and is not interested in a closer political relationship.

Mr Blair’s new organisation launches in the spring and intends to analyse why British voters chose Brexit and the populist forces that led to the election of Donald Trump in the United States. He suggests there is a global political vacuum, and his moves to get senior Lib-Dems on side could be seen as an attempt to galvanise centre ground politics and restore New Labour thinking in the UK.

Staunch Remain campaigner Mr Clegg has previously said he agrees with Mr Blair’s view that a second referendum should not be ruled out. The pair both believe those who voted to stay in the EU should be able to make the argument that remaining is in the country’s interest.

A spokesman for Mr Farron refused to comment.