LONDON, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- A close friend of British Prime Minister Tony Blair says the leader came close to resigning this summer because of personal reasons, The Guardian reported.
Broadcaster and author Melvyn Bragg did not disclose the nature of the "pressing domestic" issues Blair faced, Bragg said in an ITV television interview. However, he said Blair had been under "tremendous stress" this year, when he was being "hammered" in the press.
At the time, Blair's personal ratings for trust had fallen sharply over Iraq, he was deeply embarrassed by the images of prisoner abuse at the Abu Ghraib prison and Labor feared a Conservative revival.
Bragg and his wife, Cate Haste, were guests at Blair's 50th birthday party last weekend, which was restricted to close family friends.
Cate Haste is the co-author with Blair's wife Cherie of a book about the spouses of prime ministers and their life inside No 10 Downing Street.
A spokesman at Downing Street did not deny Bragg's claim, but said Blair still stood by his statement in July that he had not considered quitting.
