Margaret Thatcher has made a dramatic return to the political front line with a searing attack on Tony Blair's "Left-wing" tax-and-spend policies and his failure to carry the nation in the war on Iraq.
The former prime minister's broadside came as she defied doctor's orders to make a speech last night marking the 25th anniversary of her rise to power.
Having once praised the rise of New Labour as her greatest legacy, Baroness Thatcher turned her fire on Mr Blair - to denounce his adoption of some of her policies as a "conversion of convenience".
To loud cheers from an audience that included current Tory leader Michael Howard, she said: "We are quite old. But we are still fighting ... the old ones are always the best".
Lady Thatcher's speech heralds a fresh determination to get back into politics following a year of faltering health and the death of her husband Sir Denis.
The Evening Standard has learned that she is to step up her presence in Parliament by moving her office to the House of Lords. There are plans for her to attend this year's Tory conference and to go on a US tour.
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