Will Maggie have the last laugh?

WILL MAGGIE THATCHER HAVE LAST LAUGH OVER TONY BLAIR?.........Tony Blair's hopes of staying Prime Minister longer than Margaret Thatcher's record eleven and a half year spell have been damaged by losing the 90 day vote, say bookmakers William Hill, who have doubled the odds of him beating that record from 5/2 to 5/1. And Hills say that their customers are now backing Blair to be gone sooner, rather than later, and offer 7/4 that he will no longer be PM on December 31, 2006.'We have slashed the odds for him to go by the end of next year, but some customers reckon he'll be gone even sooner, so we are offering 10/1 for him to stand down before the end of THIS year.' said Hill's spokesman Graham Sharpe. Hills also offer 2/1 for Blair to go in 2007; 5/2 in 2008; 7/1 in 2009 and 20/1 in 2010 or later.**GORDON BROWN is 1/7 favourite to succeed Tony Blair as Labour Leader with William Hill who have cut Charles Clarke from 14/1 to 10/1 second favourite and also offer 14/1David Miliband; 20/1 Alan Milburn; John Reid; 25/1 Jack Straw; 33/1 David Blunkett; 50/1 Ruth Kelly.**LABOUR are 2/5 favourites to win the next General Election with William Hill who make the Conservatives 7/4 and the Lib-Dems 66/1.MYSTERY PUNTER STAKES £39,000 ON CAMERON TO WIN TORY RACE.........A mystery punter has visited a William Hill betting shop in Holborn, London, on three occasions to stake hefty bets on David Cameron to win the race to become the next Conservative Leader. He staked £9000 on Cameron at odds of 2/9 today, Thursday; two days earlier he had bet £30,000 on him at odds of 1/10, and during the Party Conference, had staked £200 at 13/2.The man - in his late thirties of early forties - has now staked a total of £39,200 and will collect £45,500 if the bet is successful. 'This man is clearly extremely confident that Cameron will win the race - despite a recent poll putting him behind David Davis. Whether he is a friend of Mr Cameron's or not, we have no idea' said Hill's spokesman Graham Sharpe. Hills currently make Cameron 2/9 favourite to win the race, with Davis quoted at 3/1.