TONY BLAIR went into hospital for heart treatment today buoyed by a Labour victory in the Hartlepool by-election.
The Prime Minister told well-wishers that he was "fine" as he left Downing Street for the Hammersmith Hospital prior to the two-hour procedure.
His mood will have been improved by Ian Wright’s victory, albeit with a much-reduced majority in the n
orth-east town, and by the resounding defeat at the Labour Party Conference of a move to set a deadline to withdraw British troops from Iraq.
Revealing a recurrence of a heart flutter, Mr Blair also made clear that he intends to serve a full third term as prime minister if he wins the next UK General Election expected in the spring.
His future looked rosier than that of Tory leader Michael Howard, who saw his party beaten into fourth place by the UK Independence Party at Hartlepool, the first time the official opposition has not finished in the first three of a by-election since the end of the Second World War.
A Liberal Democrat spokesman immediately said this was a disaster for Mr Howard and showed that their party was the real opposition to Labour.
Tory chairman Liam Fox said merely that the result was "disappointing".
Mr Blair left Downing Street for hospital at about 7.05am this morning, dressed in a dark suit and light blue shirt with no tie.
He was later sedated for a catheter ablation - a process in which a wire is placed inside the cavity of the heart to identify where the problem is. Electrical pulses are then used to prevent the abnormal rhythm, which causes feelings of nausea and worry.
Surgeons say the treatment is simple, and Mr Blair described it as "routine".
The Prime Minister was due to spend tonight in hospital and rest over the weekend before returning to normal duties on Monday and heading to Africa on Tuesday. John Prescott will take charge in the interim.
The Prime Minister told the BBC last night that the cardiac treatment would not mean the end of his political career. He said: "I think I can still make a real contribution to this country. The decision as to who is the prime minister of the country is the decision of the British people - they are the boss.
"If I am elected I would serve a full third term - I do not want to serve a fourth. I don’t think the British people would want a prime minister to go on that long but I think it sensible to make plain my intention now."
The statement immediately prompted speculation about the effect it would have on the ambitions of Chancellor Gordon Brown to succeed Mr Blair and whether it would start a severe bout of infighting with other Cabinet ministers, notably election strategist Alan Milburn, jockeying for position.
This rumours increased when Mr Blair revealed he and wife Cherie had bought a £3.6 million townhouse in London’s fashionable Connaught Square, near Hyde Park Corner. The deal was part-financed by selling the two controversial Bristol flats bought with the help of conman Peter Foster and the property will be leased until he quits as Prime Minister.
Mr Blair praised Mr Brown - who wished him well with his treatment - and said his decision over his career didn’t rule out the Chancellor "in any shape or form at all".
Mr Fox immediately said Mr Blair’s comments would lead to a "debilitating" bout of infighting, with the whole Cabinet now putting their personal ambitions before the interests of Britain.
And he denied that the Hartlepool result was a disaster for Mr Howard.
But Labour’s victory with 12,752 votes - seeing new European Commissioner Peter Mandelson’s former majority of more than 14,000 reduced to 2033 - was undoubtedly a relief for Mr Blair and his party. It was good news for the Lib Dems who came second with 10,719 and stunning news for Stephen Allison of the UK Independence Party who got 3193. That was 149 more than Tory Jeremy Middleton.
Liberal Democrat spokesman Matthew Taylor said it showed the Lib Dems were now challenging Labour all over the country - sharing power in Scotland and Wales and winning power in cities such as Newcastle.
He said: "It is a disaster for Michael Howard who replaced Iain Duncan Smith because he was doing badly. Now Mr Howard is doing worse. For the first time under a Labour government the protest vote is going to the Liberal Democrats and not the Tories."
Mr Blair and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw were relieved after Labour’s Brighton conference defeated the call for an early withdrawal of troops from Iraq from 86 per cent to 14 per cent following a deal struck with the trade unions.
