TONY Blair yesterday issued a rallying call to the world to fight injustice in the wake of the terrorist attacks on America.

The Prime Minister told a sombre Labour conference in Brighton that the world stood at a turning point in history.

"This is a moment to seize," said Mr Blair. "The kaleidoscope has been shaken, the pieces are in flux. Soon they will settle again. Before they do, let us re-order this world around us."

And in a statesmanlike performance watched by the world, the Prime Minister gave the clearest warning yet to the Taliban regime in Afghanistan that they face being forcibly removed by the international coalition ranged against them.

"I say to the Taliban: surrender the terrorists or surrender power. It's your choice."

It was a speech charged with emotion in the aftermath of the September 11 atrocities - and Mr Blair placed a great emphasis on the morality of the coalition's position.

He said that when those responsible were brought to justice, it would not be done through bloodlust. "We do so because it is just. We do not act against Islam. The true followers of Islam are our brothers and sisters in this struggle.

"Bin Laden is no more obedient to the proper teaching of the Koran than those Crusaders of the 12th Century, who pillaged and murdered, represented the teaching of the Gospel."

It was time the West confronted its ignorance of Islam, he said.

But as well as sending a signal of imminent military action, the Premier pressed home his message that the world community must show compassion as well as force.

"If globalisation works only for the benefit of the few, then it will fail and will deserve to fail," he said.

The starving, the wretched, the dispossessed, the ignorant - "they too are our cause".

The Prime Minister tied in his call for change in the world with his demands for reform at home.

He had never given up his basic Labour values. "This party believes in public services, and the proof is we're spending more, hiring more and paying more than ever before," he said.

"Nobody is talking about privatising the NHS or schools." But the private sector would be used where it could raise standards.

Mr Blair also gave the clearest signal yet that a referendum on the euro will take place during this Parliament.

The Prime Minister said the Government should have the courage of its convictions in making the argument for British membership, provided the five conditions laid out by Chancellor Gordon Brown are fulfilled.

Although Mr Blair did not go beyond existing policy, his words were seen by some as meaning the referendum was "now on" for this Parliament.