On Leadership: Tony Blair’s blueprint for governance in a turbulent era

Tony Blair's On Leadership is not just a reflection on his years in power but a practical manual for navigating the complexities of modern governance. Nearly two decades after leaving office, Blair remains a figure of both influence and controversy, and his latest book, unsurprisingly, reflects both qualities.

Drawing on his experience as Britain’s longest-serving Labour prime minister, the book is a mix of strategic counsel and personal reflection, aimed at current and future leaders grappling with the demands of office.

Blair’s central thesis is that effective leadership is about delivery. This is a recurring theme throughout On Leadership, where he defines leaders as action-takers who solve problems rather than merely articulate them.

Success, he argues, lies in execution, not in lofty ideals. It is this pragmatism that underpins much of Blair’s thinking, and the book is structured more like a handbook than a memoir. The message is clear: the business of governing is not about ideology but about delivering tangible results. For Blair, leadership is "Right vs Wrong," not Left vs Right.

Technology plays a starring role in his vision of the future. Blair is an unabashed optimist about the potential of artificial intelligence and genomics to revolutionize governance. In his view, leaders who embrace technological change will be the ones who succeed in addressing the challenges of the 21st century.

Yet, as critics have pointed out, Blair’s enthusiasm for innovation sometimes borders on naivety. His admiration for tech moguls such as Elon Musk—whose inventions he praises while sidestepping Musk’s political controversies—leaves some questioning whether Blair fully grapples with the darker side of technological disruption.

The book is not short on practical advice. Blair devotes significant space to the structural elements of leadership, such as creating “delivery units” to focus on top priorities, keeping distractions at bay, and carving out time to think strategically. There are also chapters on handling media scrutiny, managing bureaucracy, and avoiding paranoia—“even though they are out to get you,” he wryly notes.

Blair’s style, peppered with motivational slogans, has drawn mixed reactions. Some readers find his aphorisms charming, while others have dismissed them as platitudes, with one reviewer likening the book to a fortune cookie.

More controversial is Blair’s approach to foreign leadership. While he champions democratic values, On Leadership suggests a pragmatic acceptance of non-democratic regimes. He praises China’s achievements in poverty reduction and Saudi Arabia’s ongoing reforms, framing them as examples of effective governance, even if achieved under autocratic rule.

This has divided opinion, with some critics arguing that Blair’s admiration for strongmen borders on the dangerously amoral. Yet for Blair, the issue is one of outcomes—if a government fails to deliver, its good intentions are irrelevant.

Blair’s reflections on Iraq, the issue that overshadowed his premiership, are more tempered than in the past. He acknowledges the miscalculations of trying to install democracy in a post-dictatorship Iraq but remains defiant about the broader principles behind his decisions.

The war, he concedes, will always be a defining aspect of his legacy, yet he stresses that leaders must tend to their broader achievements to avoid being defined by single issues. It is a lesson aimed at today’s leaders, particularly those who find themselves mired in crises.

Despite its flaws, On Leadership is more than just a memoir; it is an ambitious attempt to distill the lessons Blair learned in office and afterward, advising governments around the world. Its timing is notable, coinciding with the rise of Keir Starmer, the first Labour leader to win a general election since Blair himself. While Blair insists the book is not aimed at Starmer, the implicit message is clear: leaders succeed by focusing on outcomes, not ideology, and by embracing the new rather than clinging to the old.

For all its occasional lapses into cliché, On Leadership offers a compelling case for why governance must be rooted in pragmatism. Blair’s optimism, sometimes out of step with today’s political climate, is perhaps his most valuable contribution to the discourse. He believes in politics as a force for good and in leadership as a craft to be mastered.

Whether future leaders take his advice to heart remains to be seen, but his influence on political thinking—both in Britain and beyond—endures. The question is whether Blair’s brand of leadership is still relevant in a world that has shifted considerably since he left Downing Street.