Baroness Kinnock, the Europe minister, has given the clearest signal yet that the former Prime Minister is running, for the EU's top job

"The UK government is supporting Tony Blair's candidature for president of the council," she said.

Asked if Mr Blair's candidacy for president of the Council of the EU, a position created by the Lisbon Treaty, had been confirmed, Baroness Kinnock repeated that he was the British choice.

"I am not saying there has been any formal confirmation or statement from Tony but it certainly is the government's position. I am sure they would not do it without asking him," she said.

Mr Blair is seen by key European leaders, including President Nicolas Sarkozy, as an international statesman who can help boost the EU's presence on the world stage as its official global representative.

"Blair is seen by many as someone who has the strength of character, the stature, people know who he is and he would be someone who would have this role and step into it with a lot of respect and I think would be generally welcomed," said Baroness Kinnock.

Mr Blair, currently working as international envoy to the Middle East haso never ruled himself out of the EU job but has stressed that the Lisbon Treaty must enter into force before a presidential contest can begin.

"As far as we are concerned nothing has changed. There is nothing to be a candidate for, the job does not exist," said a source close to Mr Blair.

The Lisbon Treaty, the successor to the EU constitution, is awaiting a second referendum in Ireland after Irish voters rejected it last year.

A British Government spokesman said: "The Irish have yet to hold their referendum on the treaty, and if and when the treaty enters into force, and if Mr. Blair decides to run as a candidate as president, then Glenys Kinnock is quite right - he would have the Government's support."

Under the treaty, the current system of six-monthly EU presidencies rotated between 27 member countries will be replaced by a "President of the Council".

The new EU president will be a full-time Brussels official for his two-and-a-half year term, chosen by Europe's leaders but unelected by voters.

Baroness Kinnock has announced that Tony Blair is Britain's official candidate for the job of European Union President later this year.

The job, would involve Mr. Blair co-coordinating EU policy and brokering agreements between leaders of the 27 member states.

It is expected to carry a salary and perks package of at least £200,000 a year.

However, a spokesman for Tony Blair said: "There is no campaign. As we have said time and again on this, there is nothing to be a candidate for since the job doesn't actually exist." End of quote

The Bible tells us that we shall not know who the Beast is until he is revealed.

Accordingly, it is not being too presumptuous, or jumping the gun, to believe that the Antichrist now has been revealed in the form of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

As Bible students have been saying for quite sometime know that the Beast consolidates all of his power for the complete control for firstly the EU, and then the whole of the globe under the banner of the EU presidency there really does seem to be very little doubt now to that reality.

Any statement that I choose to make such as the one above has to be tested and proven with the scriptures themselves and the facts of the matter are that there is a load of scripture that says the Beast is a lion, or in the instance of Blair a former British Prime Minister.

For those that may say that the Antichrist may not be the first president of the EU, nor even the second one, or so on, even years away they may be correct?

However, remembering that the Antichrist comes forth as the peace maker of the Middle East when you bring into the equation Blair’s prominence as the head of the international quartet of four towards Middle East peace then that changes that argument dramatically - particularly he has just come out and said that there will be a Middle East treaty within a year which would make it right after he has been appointed as the full time EU president at around about early January 2010 -- just as the Bible says would be the case.

I am extremely worried for those that have not yet given their lives over to Christ by accepting him as their saviour and deliverer for their time has know almost run out for once this man is in power within a few months then let the end game begin.

The 27 member nations of the EU have already agreed to the EU constitution (the Lisbon Treaty) and once Ireland has agreed to it at the meeting that is to take place on the 02nd of October then the position for the full time president will be created.

Remember also that it was Blair who confirmed a covenant between the Protestants and Catholics over their decade’s long conflicts.

NB If there has been any hurt or misunderstanding that I have caused by any comments that I have made relative to my fellow Christians then I humbly regret in having done so, may God forgive me.