The news that Tony Blair is due to step down from PM and Labour Party leader before the end of next month was expected but it still made of itself a “breaking news” event. Particularly in view of his lengthy period of time in office as well the colourful years he spent at the helm.

One might have disagreed with some of the man’s policies particularly on Iraq but I personally think that the overall assessment of his premiership is impressive on various counts.

He will be remembered as a determined person who injected vitality and energy in the execution of his role.

While some lament that there was more style than substance to him and others questioned his social democratic roots, it was interesting to note that although he always appeared eager to please, he often did take controversial decisions, particularly in foreign policy.

I had occasion to meet him before the state dinner during the Malta CHOGM when I was asked to represent the MLP leader Alfred Sant. He came across as a sharp person, a master in body language but also a direct and skilful communicator.

What is interesting is that the moment his retirement was formally made public last Thursday, two of the best and most positive appreciations came from eminent Tories.

Kenneth Clark’s face is reported to have often creased with admiration when Blair was speaking in the Commons, rather more than when David Cameron was speaking. While on the other hand, former Tory leader William Hague recalled that although Blair was a truly formidable campaigner and the most dangerous opponent the Tory party has ever known, in his opinion even though “Blair carried out innumerable policies to which he (Hague) was utterly opposed and still is, try as he might he cannot actually dislike him.”

According to Hague, Blair’s major personal and political strengths were his huge belief in his own ability to represent within his own person a wide variety of beliefs and cause.

There were various instances where he was a bridge-builder between conflicting forces. On the other hand, even if he often claimed to believe in almost everything, he is eventually seen by some as believing in nothing.

Blair will also be remembered for all the spin that has been spun and a number of his most famous soundbites.

What is interesting is that the first two groups of people to comment on his imminent exit from the political scene were political satirists and historians.

One cartoonist admitted that he detested the man and what he has done but thought “he was great to draw!”

Another one admired him for being a perfect master of TV particularly at a time when we are living in a TV world.

Others do not really bother what he is saying since he often managed to get a captive audience ostensibly without really trying.

When a politician becomes worthy of satire it means that he has weight and gravitas.

I must admit that there were moments when Blair used to baffle me in the sense that he used to cast a spell through his own directness and straightforward approach, while in other instances he can be and was accused by his critics of being complex and contradictory.

Historians in their majority spoke highly of him, arguing that history will judge him to a degree in the same way everyone judges him now. “He has so many skills as a politician – he is resilient, he has stamina, he has charm, he is articulate, he is a great Commons performer and he has great energy.”

Nevertheless I very much fear that unless a miracle happens in Iraq, it will continue to haunt him even after he has retired from the scene completely.

His relationship with George Bush was not only criticised about Iraq but also about its allegedly inherent imbalance. Some say that it went beyond a mere focus on foreign affairs to the extent that a deep religious bond has been attributed to it as well.

What annoyed his critics most was that it was reported to have distorted his views at times and moved him away from issues at home, and particularly in Europe.

This should nevertheless in no way undermine or belittle his achievements – particularly on the domestic front.

He will be leaving behind a country that is far more prosperous than when he took over. The same can be said for the strength of the economy.

One particular historian I like following is Niall Ferguson although some of his views are distinctly right wing.

Accusing him of botched reforms and a diluted brand of Thatcherism, he recalls that when he first met Blair, before he became PM, he remembered asking him if he was New Labour or New Liberal, because to his mind he did not seem like a socialist.

Ferguson commented this way: “He just gave me one of those wide grins!”

Regarding the economic stability that was his government’s forte I believe that much credit should be due to Gordon Brown.

This is a remarkable feat in its own right because economic instability was often responsible for the undoing of many earlier Labour governments in Britain.

It is an open secret that Blair was a secret admirer of Margaret Thatcher but Ferguson went one further when he stated that what the British electorate wanted and got, was the Thatcherite economics without its rather harsh face.

Thatcherism-lite, with a degree of old Labour income redistribution “smuggled in” by the chancellor.

I agree with all those who are of the opinion that Blair’s real test will come during the next elections.

In the sense that whether his successor wins or loses the next election, much of the success or failure will be still attributed to Blair.

To win three elections in a row in a post-Thatcher period was no mean feat for Labour.

Although he lost a number of good people during his terms of office, he was often surrounded by quite a number of competent ministers.

Having elevated spin doctoring to an art, he is considered to have subordinated governing to the needs of the media.

He introduced an era where future prime ministers will be judged mainly on how they look on screen.

He got engaged in so many wars – not always alongside Bush – that there are people I know who attribute it mainly to his almost missionary conviction for saving the world by armed interventions.

Although many friends of mine fear globalisation, I consider it an irreversible process whether one sees in it a threat or an opportunity.

Blair’s biggest success was in my opinion that he managed to modernise and globalise Britain in the same breath.

This applies both culturally, economically and politically.

It is a pity that the man is bowing out at a time when Labour opinion polls show an all-time drop, even more so because I personally believe that although I disagreed fundamentally with his subservience on Iraq as a PM, his legacy will actually stand the test of time.

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Leo Brincat is the opposition spokesman for Foreign Affairs and IT