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Blair Keeps PM Post, but Labour's Grip Weakens

STEVE INSKEEP, host:

British Prime Minister Tony Blair is celebrating a third straight election win. His Labor Party lost about 50 seats in Parliament but maintained a majority.

Prime Minister TONY BLAIR (Britain): We've got to listen to the people and respond wisely and sensibly. But they have made it very clear they wanted to carry on with Labor and not go back to the Tory years.

INSKEEP: Analysts attribute the Labor Party's win to a strong British economy. Some blame the Labor Party's defeats in some districts on a loss of confidence in Blair, triggered by the war in Iraq. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

Steve Inskeep is a host of NPR's Morning Edition, as well as NPR's morning news podcast Up First.