Christians have reacted to today's announcement from Prime Minister Tony Blair that he will leave office on 27 June after 10 turbulent years in power.

Blair told Cabinet of his plans to resign on Thursday morning before making the announcement in a speech to party members in his Sedgefield constituency.

According to the official spokesman for the Prime Minister, Blair was praised during the Cabinet meeting by his successor Gordon Brown for his "unique achievements" and "unique leadership".

Speaking in his Sedgefield constituency, Blair admitted that his Government had not always lived up to high expectations but said he had felt very lucky to lead "the greatest nation on earth", reports the BBC.

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, issued a statement on Thursday in response to Blair's announcement.

"I fundamentally disagreed with Tony Blair over the invasion of Iraq - which I saw as a breach of international law - but disagreement is part of the free and fair society which he has endeavoured to uphold during his time in office," he said.

"Tony Blair always welcomed what he termed "prophetic wisdom" from the Church on matters of state, even where such wisdom took the form of criticism or disagreement.

"Such disagreement should not detract from many of the remarkable things Tony Blair has achieved in office, not least among which was the peace settlement in Northern Ireland, where he ensured that past prejudices and failures were not allowed to get in the way of constructive dialogue and peace.

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Dr Alan McDonald, praised Blair on his departure, saying his efforts in Northern Ireland should be a particular source of pride: "Tony Blair's achievement in leading the United Kingdom for ten years is remarkable.

"Though the ever-widening gap between rich and poor, the attachment to American foreign policy, and the decision in favour of a new generation of nuclear weapons are all matters of great regret, I would rather concentrate on positives.

"The provision of undreamt of resources for education and the health service, and the speed with which the promise of devolved government was delivered in Scotland and Wales, should be a source of pride for him.

"Above all, history should remember him for the peace process in Northern Ireland."

The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development also commented on Blair's announcement to depart from office in June, saying that his Government had delivered on aid promises but still failed to bring in justice.

Repeated campaign pledges of global leadership, on trade in particular, "had taken second place to defending the economic status quo".

"The Blair Government has delivered generosity, but not justice," said CAFOD. "In areas of national policy where it has the unilateral power to effect change, the Government has delivered increased aid and worked to use it more effectively.

"Yet, ten years after Blair took office, the challenges of development remain daunting: 5,000 children are still dying every day from drinking dirty water and a billion people are still living in extreme poverty."