BLAIR NOT QUITTING AS MP - NO.10

Mr Blair is set to announce next Thursday that he will resign as Prime Minister, triggering a 48-day process to elect his successor, expected to be Gordon Brown.

Sources told the Press Association that Mr Blair is expected to travel to Trimdon Labour Club in his Sedgefield constituency the next day - May 11 - to give further details about his future to local party activists.

There was speculation that he has told friends he has decided to leave the Commons as soon as possible, sparking an early by-election.

But his official spokesman said: "That is wrong. The only announcement he will make next week is about his future as party leader."

Mr Blair's agent in Sedgefield, John Burton, said he knew nothing about any plans for Mr Blair to stand down immediately as an MP and thought it unlikely that he would.

He told Sky News: "I think we'd all be disappointed. We've come to know him, to love him, to cherish him and we would like him to stay on for as long as possible."

Mr Blair has never said publicly when he will stand down as MP for Sedgefield, which he has represented since 1983.

But he has made clear that he wants to do something completely different when he leaves politics.

There have been a number of reports in recent months speculating that Mr Blair will stand down as an MP before the next general election or sooner.