Premiership of Tony Blair elected Labour leader as the only successfully nominated candidate with 313 nominations compared to John McDonnell's 29 at close of nominations on 17 May 2007, the result being declared formally and coming into effect on 24 June 2007 with Tony Blair resigning as Prime Minister on 27 June 2007 and Gordon Brown being asked to form a government by The Queen later that day. Blair stepped down as an MP immediately triggering a by-election in Sedgefield. He has declined the traditional seat in the House of Lords offered to former Prime Ministers, commenting that it is, "not my scene" Tony
Woodford (UK Parliament constituency) Woodford (UK Parliament constituency) Woodford was a parliamentary constituency in Essex which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1945 until it was renamed for the 1964 general election. The constituency's only Member of Parliament for its entire existence was Sir Winston Churchill of the Conservative Party; from 1924 he had represented the Epping constituency from which Woodford was created. He represented the Woodford seat during his second tenure as Prime Minister, and continued to hold it until he retired aged 89 at the 1964 general election; it was