TEN years ago, the bell-ringers of a Wickford church rang a peal to celebrate the arrival of Tony Blair at Downing Street and the end of 18 years of Conservative Government.

Will they ring another peal to celebrate Blair's departure?

If they do, the bells are likely to be muffled.

Mr Blair hasn't convulsed the country or polarised opinion into conflicting camps of bitter enemies and fierce loyalists the way Margaret Thatcher did.

Iraq has turned into a running political sore, but not a strong enough one to unseat him before he was ready to go.

The war aside, though, the final verdict on Tony Blair PM is likely to be muted.

The political epitaph on a young Prime Minister, who once promised so much, may well be just three words: "Is that it?"

Look at the record rather than the rhetoric and it is clear his style has been continuity and consensus, not radical change or controversial new ideas.

In an odd way, he may well be remembered more for a merciful absence of grand gestures, rather than for any changes he has pushed through.

His administration hasn't made life difficult for the grammar schools, re-nationalised the railways, dumped the pound in favour of the euro, or thrown taxpayers' money at wasteful, but vote-winning schemes.

Nor has he pulled the plug on programmes set up by Conservative predecessors, notably the Thames Gateway, which he endorsed and backed, if not with money, then at least with the words "Go for it!".

All this suits the pragmatic Essex style, where we tend to prefer politicians who stay at a safe distance and let us get on with things.

It is a pity his non-action included doing nothing to curb the excesses of red tape and the nanny state.

Nevertheless, the Blair years have been good ones for south Essex in particular, which emerged from the horrors of recession under the John Major government to flourish as never before, at least economically.

Tony may refer to himself as a "bloke", but he was never an Essex Man.

The scarcity of his visits suggests we never featured very prominently on his radar. Still, we in our turn, never did much for Tony Blair.

Only Basildon and Thurrock have remained in any way bastions of Labour, new or old. Now, as far as Essex is concerned, the Blair era is already over.

Angela praises Tony Blair's legacy

TONY Blair should be proud of a thriving ecomony and a booming jobs and housing market, a Labour MP says.

Angela Smith, Labour MP for Basildon and junior local government minister, welcomed Mr Blair on two visits to the town.

He supported Mrs Smith shortly before the 1997 election by visiting Pitsea Working Men's Club.

Mr Blair also took a tour around the Craylands estate in 2005 as he launched new antisocial behaviour legislation.

Mrs Smith said south Essex's economy had thrived during the Prime Minister's time in office.

She said: "So many businesses have settled in Basildon and that means more jobs. When I was growing up, I remember people here leaving school and not expecting to find work.

"There was a big problem with unemployment and a bit of a mood of resignation.

"Now the local economy is thriving and unemployment is minimal.

"People in Basildon have much higher expectations and that's something Tony can be proud of.

"No government, from any party, has ever enjoyed such a sustained period of economic growth. I think that has been his greatest achievement."

The MP said the local housing market had benefited from consistently low interest rates. She said: "My first mortgage under the Thatcher Government was 15 to 17 per cent. It's been nowhere near that over the past ten years.

"That has been great for people who were able to buy their homes and house prices have risen dramatically in Basildon.

"There is, of course, a problem now with first-time buyers getting onto the property ladder, which will be one of the major challenges for the next Labour government."

She also pointed to significant Government investment to regenerate Basildon's housing estates.

The MP said: "The Craylands estate and the rest of the district is gradually being brought up to 21st century standards and a lot of that is down to Government funding. I think Tony can be extremely proud of what he has done for people here."

John Baron, Conservative MP for Billericay, was less complimentary about Tony Blair's record. He was scathing about South Essex Strategic Health Authority having to pay £27.3million in loans to bail out other failing health authorities.

He said: "Blair's poor management of the NHS caused this and we don't know when, or if, we will get the money back. Losing all that money is bound to lead to cuts in health services locally."

He was also critical of Tony Blair's failure to update legislation surrounding travellers, which he blames for the giant illegal settlement at Crays Hill.

He said: "Local authorities across the country need to work together to find suitable sites for travellers to settle down legally. But Basildon has done its bit because we already have more than 100 legal sites in the district."

He gave the Government credit nationally for continuing John Major's good work on the Northern Ireland peace process.

But he said: "Unfortunately for Tony Blair, most people will regard Iraq as his key legacy.

"Not only was this country misled in going to war, but its disastrous consequences are still costing many lives and will haunt this nation for many years to come.

"When the history books are written, this will go down as a moment when the world took a step backwards - and Tony Blair was one of those responsible."