91Èȱ¬

Cherie Blair has made clear that she wants her husband Tony to have the last word on when he should step down after saying he is not going to fight another general election.

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"It's absolutely his decision - it's his career," she said in an exclusive interview for 91Èȱ¬ World Service. "I wouldn't expect him to tell me what to do with my career. And I don't think it's for me to tell him what to do in his career, either."

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But did she look forward to the day when the Number Ten door closed behind her for the last time - given the opportunity to spend more time with Tony?

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"I think being in Number Ten is such a privilege - there are many fantastic things about it," she said. "And so I enjoy it, I have to say. And I haven't really thought about what the future's going to be like.

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"One advantage of Number Ten is - you actually do live above the shop. And it has meant that although Tony has a very busy workload, because the family is only two minutes away, he really can come up, see (six-year-old) Leo before he goes to bed - which he likes.

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"(Tony) likes to put Leo to bed if he can - see the children, be there for them. There are some advantages in living on top of the shop".

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In a wide-ranging interview, Cherie Blair also said there was no conflict between her role as a leading human rights lawyer and the Government's war on terror, spoke of her attitude to the media and gave intimate glimpses into life at No 10 Downing Street.

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On human rights, she was asked by Carrie Gracie on The Interview programme if she was in 'no-man's-land' - caught between a government wanting to tighten anti-terror laws and a legal profession determined to defend fundamental freedoms.

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Denying any suggestion of 'trench warfare' between the judiciary and the government, she said both had different roles, but the same aim.

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This was "to ensure the safety, the security and respect for the human rights of everybody in our country ... there's a dialogue about how those trade-offs have to take place. But it's been ever thus, and I don't think the relationship is any different now than it was a few years ago".

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Asked about suggestions that the Human Rights Act should be re-written to deal with terrorism, she said: "The question of terrorism is clearly a very live one. But the question of how we deal with that, in a democracy, is always something that's up for debate.

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"In Britain, I think we can pride ourselves on being the home of human rights - going right back to Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights - and beyond that, we were the first signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights".

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But were human rights now 'under danger' in Britain? "Absolutely not," she said. She also denied feeling 'uncomfortable' when representing clients in cases against the Government - for example, acting for Nepalese Gurkha soldiers against the Ministry of Defence over allegations of discrimination.

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She said: "In Britain we have a very clear idea of the different roles of the advocate, the judge and the Government. We're very lucky - I'm very lucky - that in our country we have no concept that our judges are influenced in a direct way by the government of the day. We accept it (the separation of roles) and our judges are indeed fully independent."

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Cherie Blair made clear she would never turn down a case because it might embarrass the government - saying government was "completely separate from the legal profession".

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She also operated "the cab-rank rule" - taking cases where she was competent to act "that come along, if you are available at the time".

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But what about media-pressure? In 2001, journalists asked whether the Blairs had medically immunised their baby, Leo - arguing it was of legitimate public interest. "I don't think it's ever legitimate to involve politicians' families, particularly children - both under 18, but actually even above 18 - in policy discussions," she said.

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"You can have a policy discussion without involving innocent people in it."

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And her reaction to media coverage of the Labour Party paying her seven thousand pound plus hair-dressing bill during the last general election campaign?

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Pointing out that tax-payers money was not involved, she said: "Frankly, honestly, what a load of fuss about trivia! It's something about women, isn't it? Who noticed, or who made a big fuss, that the Tory Party paid three and a half thousand pounds for the Leader of the Opposition's make-up?

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"But women and their hair, women and their appearance - it's part of the thing that we seem to suffer."

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Did she resent this or was she able to shrug it off?

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"I don't think it's a question of resenting it. It's a fact of life. And you just have to accept that your appearance is a matter of interest to the press. I don't actually think the most interesting thing about me is my appearance. But there you are."

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Given her high-pressure legal career combined with raising four children and being the Prime Minister's wife, what was a typical day?

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"There isn't such a thing as a typical day. The one thing that is constant, is that, if I'm in court, I will be in court between, essentially, 10.00am and 4.30pm. But apart from those days, everything else is up for grabs."

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And is the 'getting-up routine' as chaotic in the Blair household as in every other home in the land?

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"Oh, probably more so, because if you ask my husband or my children, they'll always say that Cherie's not terrifically good at getting up," she said. "Once I get up, I don't stop. But getting me up can sometimes be a challenge."

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And whose job is that? "Mainly Tony's". How does he do it? "Practice!"

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Asked about her description of Downing Street as "a goldfish bowl", she spoke of wanting to "preserve as normal a family life for our children as possible". But added: "It's difficult for us to close the door on the officials. The Prime Minister's job is seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

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"I can remember, when he was Leader of the Opposition, maybe occasionally I might take the phone off the hook. You can't do that to the Prime Minister. We can't lock the door. The door is not locked. The door must always be open - in case he's needed. So we have to live our family life around that."

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So how did she cope with having a fourth child - Leo - aged 45?

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"It wasn't planned, I can assure you," she said. "(But) to have a young child come into your lives at a time when you're living in this high-powered situation, and where you've got three teenage children, was a tremendously healing thing.

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"Because it really brought us all back down to the basics. And Leo has added so much to our lives."

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But is Cherie, who told class-mates at age fourteen that she wanted to be Prime Minister and stood for election as a Labour MP in 1983 (the same year Tony Blair became an MP), happy with idea that he ended up as PM and she did not?

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"I think it was fate," she said. "And actually I think he ended up in the right place, and I ended up in the right place too".

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How so? "Because I think he is the best politician. And I think I'm a pretty good lawyer" And her marriage of 26 years? Is it the real thing?

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Is she still in love with the Prime Minister? "I surely am," she said." In fact, whenever anyone asks me what it's like - being married to the British Prime Minister - I say: "I rather like him". I liked him 26 years ago; and I like him even more now".

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The full interview between Carrie Gracie and Cherie Blair can be heard on The Interview on 91Èȱ¬ World Service in Europe at 0530 and 2230 UK time on Saturday May 27 and on Sunday May 28 at 0730 and 1230 UK time.

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