Blair is very fond of the countryside – as long as it is in France or Italy 

Sophie Wessex, like all those Tory tittle-tattlers, is wrong about Tony Blair not liking the countryside; he does. The question is whether it’s the British countryside or somebody else’s.

From the evidence of their holiday destinations, it is clear the Blairs prefer holidays in rural Tuscany or France. John Smith could think of nothing better than climbing Scottish mountains. Blair, pleading for the resumption of the cream-tea trade, looks even more out of place in the UK countryside than Nick Brown (and that’s saying something).

Full article: http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2001/apr/10/greenpolitics.politicalcolumnists