The Labour party and unions gave Tony Blair on Tuesday the kind of rapturous reception they largely denied him before he promised to leave office. But the tributes were hedged with caveats that point to the looming battles over the future political direction of the party.

Virtually everyone agreed on one thing – the prime minister’s farewell speech to conference had star quality. Even political opponents grudgingly admitted Mr Blair delivered an outstanding oration – although they dubbed this a triumph of political style, rather than substance. “This was a consummate performance by a consummate actor. But Tony Blair’s theatrics can’t disguise the bitter divisions of this paralysed government,” Francis Maude, the Conservative chairman, claimed.