Tony Blair has celebrated 10 years as Labour leader with a strong defence of his record on a range of issues.

The prime minister won the leadership election on July 21, 1994, filling the vacancy which had been caused by the death of John Smith from a heart attack.

And close friends have continued to insist that he is not about to step down from the top post in favour of chancellor Gordon Brown.

Downing Street said there were no special events planned for the day other than getting on with the job of governing the country.

But one item on Blair's agenda was a Commons appearance for the weekly question time session.

In the chamber, Michael Howard offered his congratulations on Blair's 10 years as party leader.

"They have been 10 years of deep frustration for the ambitions of my party and for the ambitions of the chancellor of the exchequer," the Conservative leader said.

Later exchanges with the opposition chief prompted the prime minister to defend his record in power.

"In this Labour government we have had more people in work, the first ever minimum wage, lowest interest rates and inflation for years, best ever exam results, more teachers, more nurses and crime down," he told MPs.

Moving on?

Recent months have seen renewed speculation over when Blair might step down and continuing tense relations with the occupant of Number 11 Downing Street.

But Cabinet colleague Lord Falconer said on Wednesday that the prime minister would remain in Number 10.

The constitutional affairs secretary and close ally of Blair said the current Labour leader would go on to fight the next general election.

There was "absolutely no sign" of the Labour leader quitting, he insisted.

"Look at what is happening at the moment - on Monday a long and detailed series of proposals about law and order, last week health, the week before that education," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"This is a prime minister and a government developing domestic policy in detail, saying to the electorate this is what we propose for the years to come."

But in the Commons, Liberal Democrat MP Bob Russell said Blair's leadership and policies "contributed to the collapse of the Labour vote in last week's parliamentary by-elections".

"What does he say to members of his own party who, after 10 years, feel that he should honour his promise to the chancellor of the exchequer, step aside and let him have the job?" he asked.

Declining to make a detailed response about his relations with Brown, the prime minister said that "ultimately the government is decided at a general election".

"And we look forward to meeting the Liberal Democrats at that general election," he added.

Iraq effect

In recent weeks ministers have focussed on public services, where the government is seeking to regain the momentum after two years in which much attention has been focussed on Iraq.

While that war has posed the most searching questions for the prime minister during his decade as Labour leader, he believes that returning to the domestic agenda will allow him to put his administration back on the front foot.

Blair has been spearheading recent announcements on health and education reform, as well as heralding a new crack down on crime.

Putting choice at the heart of his agenda, and promising further spending increases over the coming years, the prime minister will hope that he is on course for an historic third general election victory.

Lord Falconer said the government was committed to "detailed delivery" of its policies and denied that Blair's position on the Iraq war meant it would help the party if he stood down.

"We have a leader that both the party want and the public can form a view at when the next election comes," the Cabinet minister said.

"Iraq is plainly a part of a series of decisions that the government have taken, but there is also a strong domestic agenda and there is a strong commitment to making sure that Iraq moves to a settled and secure future."

Opinion polls suggest that Labour is ahead of the Conservatives, but the party's defeat in the Leicester South by-election at the hand of the Liberal Democrats suggests that the legacy of the war will not be so easy to shake off.

And there was a further sign on Wednesday of unease on the prime minister's own backbenches.

Following the criticisms of the lack of formal Cabinet discussions on Iraq set out in the Butler report, Labour MP Tony McWalter asked whether Blair thought that "the mechanisms he has in place for dealing with his own fallibilities and limitations are sufficient?"

Sidestepping the criticism, an upbeat Blair said: "I'm absolutely confident that the mechanisms for judging my fallibility are infallible."