TONY Blair had his moments of bad luck during his ten years as Prime Minister, but he also had the huge good fortune of having an embarrassingly weak opposition.

Over the past decade, the Tories have been headless chickens, not knowing which way to turn, with four different leaders, and giving the overall impression of being unfit for government.

If you believe - as we do - in the importance to democracy of strong opposition, then it is high time the Conservatives got their act together.

In the run-up to the Tory conference in Blackpool, there have been dangerous signs that the party is again about to turn in on itself, with polls showing a healthy Labour lead, and traditionalists sniping away at David Cameron's leadership.

Irrespective of whether Gordon Brown decides to go for a snap autumn election, Mr Cameron needs to emerge from this week as a potential prime minister.

Instead of bickering, his party must unite behind his bid to capture the cherished centre ground with concrete and popular policies capable of capturing the electorate's imagination.

Despite floods, foot and mouth, and the financial crisis sparked by the problems surrounding Northern Rock, the "Brown Bounce" shows not sign of stopping.

The time has come for David Cameron to prove to the country that he is capable of making a real fight of it in a General Election - and for the Conservative Party to realise that it cannot go on shuffling the deck for ever.

For the sake of democracy, we hope he ends the week in a stronger position.