UNTIL the fuel crisis debacle and the Millennium Dome fiasco Tony Blair appeared all but invincible.

Now it is apparent that the outcome of the next General Election is no longer a foregone conclusion.

While Mr Blair has had a bruising few weeks, William Hague is savouring his best ever period as Leader of the Opposition.

For the first time some opinion polls have put the Conservatives ahead of Labour.

Far from facing the bleak prospect of a further five years in the wilderness, the Conservatives are viewed as having a winning chance. And Mr Hague is being assessed for prime ministerial credentials.

On the first day of his party conference Mr Hague went on a charm offensive. Not only to gain public recognition for his leadership qualities, but also to gain recognition from within his own ranks.

While Mr Hague has imposed his stamp on Conservative policies, he has yet to stamp his authority on all sections of his party. His party appears divided on fundamental issues, most notably Europe.

And the dissenters are far from crackpot mavericks. Michael Heseltine is a former Deputy Prime Minister, and Kenneth Clarke a former Chancellor of the Exchequer. They are respected figures, both within the party and the country at large, whose credibility was left intact after the last Election.

Endorsements from them will be of far greater benefit to Mr Hague than the one he received last night from John Major.

Without them fully on board, Mr Hague will struggle to maintain momentum in the opinion polls.

The promise to pull down tower blocks and regenerate the inner cities is aimed as much as wooing Mr Heseltine and Mr Clarke and other 'One Nation' Tories as wooing urban voters.

But it remains to be seen whether it is sufficient to compensate for Mr Heseltine's and Mr Clarke's implacable opposition to Mr Hague's Euro-sceptic stance.

Disunity and internal strife were the root causes of the Conservatives' humiliation at the 1997 Election.

For all Mr Hague's valiant efforts in Bournemouth this week, division may once again be the party's undoing at next year's Election.