Blair punished for Iraq war as councils fall to Conservatives
By Andrew Grice and Colin Brown
11 June 2004
Tony Blair suffered a severe setback early today as Labour was hit by a series of defeats in the local authority elections.
The first results from the "Super Thursday" elections suggested Labour was heading for its worst performance since Mr Blair became party leader 10 years ago. Labour suffered a crushing defeat in Trafford and also lost Swindon and Tamworth as the Tories regained power in areas which are seen as weathervanes for the general election. Labour also lost its overall majority in Burnley.
http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/story.jsp?story=530325