Lobby fodder no longer  Tony Blair's defeat over the 90-day
detention plans has killed two long-lasting Westminster myths:
that Labour MPs are supine and that, however much they were
prepared to rebel when the government had a large majority, they
would behave themselves once the going was tougher. As if to
prove that ignorance deplores a vacuum, along comes another
wannabe myth to take their place: that the Prime Minister has
got into trouble with his backbenchers because he has already
pre-announced his resignation.  The opposite is true. Even if it
has weakened his authority elsewhere, his impending retirement
helped him in this particular vote. Nor is it the source of his
difficulties with any impending legislation. If you doubt this,
imagine that there had been no announcement and that the entire
Parliamentary Labour Party thought he intended to fight the next
election. In such an alternative universe, the MPs who want to
see him removed - especially those who would like to replace him
with Gordon Brown