Blunkett big winner of campaign

LONDON, England (CNN) -- A familiar figure to TV viewers worldwide because of his guide dog, blind Labour MP David Blunkett has emerged as one of the major winners of the UK election campaign.

Education minister for the last four years, Blunkett has been promoted to Home Secretary (interior minister), where he will bid to get to grips with reforming the British criminal justice system and modernising the police.

That he has risen so far from humble and hard beginnings is a tribute to the determination of this tough son of the steel city of Sheffield, in the English north.

Blunkett tells in his autobiography "On a Clear Day" how as a boy at the Royal Normal College for the Blind he used to sneak out at night to climb Jacob's Ladder, a huge tree in the grounds -- a feat which for someone unable to see demanded both courage and dexterity.

Being born blind was not the only handicap Blunkett faced. Born in 1947, he grew up in some financial hardship after his father, a gas board foreman, was killed in a work accident.

Consigned to schools for the blind from the age of four, it seemed the man who later was put in charge of Tony Blair's key task of improving English educational standards would only become a Braille typist.

But Blunkett worked at night school to pass O and A level exams, went to a local technical college and then on to Sheffield University.

The same story of grit and grind saw him being Sheffield's youngest councillor at 22, rising steadily to become Sheffield City Council leader from 1980 to 1987, and a councillor on South Yorkshire County Council.

His cheap bus fares policy in this "socialist republic of South Yorkshire" was popular with Labour Party activists.

At that time Labour was a left-leaning party whose heroes were Michael Foot and Tony Benn and, seen as a left-winger, Blunkett consistently topped the polls for the party's national executive (NEC).

When he entered the British parliament in 1987 for Sheffield, Brightside, he was already a nationally-known figure -- though inside the Labour party he was known as a no-nonsense negotiator and skilful conciliator.

Now married with three children and politically rather more to the right, he entered Labour's shadow cabinet first as health spokesman before Tony Blair gave him the key education brief. He took on the role of education secretary in the Cabinet when Labour won the 1997 election.

The job in Britain is a tricky one because it has come to demand winning support from teachers to improve standards without giving them much in the way of financial reward.

But as ever Blunkett -- who sails in his spare time -- navigated his course skilfully and came to be regarded as one of Labour's top performers.

Some analysts believe his climb to the top of the tree may not quite be over yet. CNN's European Political Editor Robin Oakley says: "Blunkett is a left-winger who came across the full way to emerge as a Blairite convert.

"He has been actively promoted by Blair as one of the Cabinet counters to the strength of Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown.

"Blunkett has been seen to have done a good job as Education Secretary. He is seen as a tough operator and a man who can drive through a departmental programme.

"He won his spurs as a spending minister and is now expected to get charge of one of the four great offices of state."