Mr Lake said he also found himself at odds with the "dither and delay" in the Conservative Party nationally over the economy, Europe, the green belt, gay marriage, immigration and foreign aid.

BBC: Sacked Surrey councillor Ian Lake quits Conservatives

The most prominent Sunni Arab partner in Mr Allawi's government, the Iraqi Islamic Party, pulled out of the race after calling in vain for a delay.

ECONOMIST: Iraq: It'll soon be time, at last, to vote | The

He has worked closely with other party-builders on Capitol Hill, particularly Dennis Hastert and Tom DeLay in the House and Bill Frist in the Senate.

ECONOMIST: Lexington

The problem is, is that they're in the minority party and don't have the levers of power to force Tom DeLay to call legislation that is introduced.

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The few defendants still active within the PT may also want to delay the verdict until after municipal elections later this year, lest any convictions hurt the party in tight races.

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Leighton Andrews AM stressed that he has no plans to delay the implementation of the banding to primary schools, one of the commitments in the Labour party's manifesto.

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