Tony Blair has sought to overcome the serious setbacks suffered by Labour in the run-up to tomorrow’s local elections, insisting “nine days of headlines should not obscure nine years of achievement” by his government.

As a senior Labour figure predicted a historic reverse for the party in the elections across England, the prime minister urged voters to concentrate on “the big picture” of policy achievement and not to focus on recent setbacks for Charles Clarke, home secretary, and John Prescott, deputy prime minister.