TONY BLAIR flew to Scotland for the G8 summit last night knowing that he faces a backlash from anti-poverty campaigners if his ambitious targets for helping Africa are watered down by his fellow world leaders.

Downing Street insisted that negotiations at the Gleneagles summit would “go down to the wire” over increasing aid and trading opportunities for Africa, as well as scrapping the debts which cripple poor countries and alleviating conflict.

But aides admitted that Mr Blair, having made common cause with Live 8 over recent months, now faced a tough choice between alienating public opinion or refusing to compromise and failing to secure a deal.

The Government was seeking yesterday to temper expectations and blame other countries. Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, admitted that the final package “might not be good enough”, and attacked the “lack of political will” among other world leaders to tackle Africa’s problems.

Bob Geldof, organiser of last weekend’s Live 8 concerts, said: “I’m not prepared to be disappointed. I don’t think that is an option. We have come for victory. It has to happen now. Not to do it now would be grotesquely irresponsible.”

Mr Brown’s comments were a response to other G8 members including Germany, Canada, the United States and Japan, who have been stalling on Britain’s proposal for doubling aid. Negotiations have recently focused on whether Africa has the capacity to absorb increased aid, and fears that money would be wasted through corruption and incompetence.

Downing Street said it was “nervous” about how Geldof and others would react to a compromise deal. The Make Poverty History campaign has already accused Mr Brown of “spinning” the scale of debt cancellation and aid being offered by G8 nations this week.

It points out that many poor countries will still be saddled with multibillion-pound debts, and the doubling of aid to Africa will not be realised until 2010 when development budgets were due to rise substantially. Oxfam, which yesterday condemned the “inertia of leadership” at the G8 summit, said that it would not hesitate to condemn Mr Blair if it felt he had not “gone the extra mile” at Gleneagles. “We are concerned at signs that the Government is downplaying hopes at this crucial stage just when it should be increasing the pressure on other nations. If Blair decides to compromise, he will get a very negative response,” said a spokesman.

But a No 10 aide said: “There is always a point when you accept we have got enough. We are not going to be macho about this and have a row for the sake of it.”

Mr Blair will be boosted at today’s official summit opening by an announcement from José Manuel Barroso, the European Commission President, pledging another one billion euros (£0.6 billion) a year on “aid for trade” programmes in Africa.

Speaking at a press conference in Gleneagles today, Senhor Barroso will say the money will help developing countries “help themselves”, adding: “We must build Africa’s capacity to seize the opportunities of free and fair trade. If sub-Saharan Africa could regain just 1 per cent more of global commerce that would be worth seven times more income a year than the continent receives in foreign aid and debt relief.”

The UK hopes that the summit will agree a statement endorsing the retention of limited tariffs by African states to protect fledgeling industries. “There is a recognition that the free-market model we have imposed on developing countries as a condition for aid in the past may not have been appropriate,” a Whitehall source said last night.

However, there is little expectation of a significant breakthrough on wider trade issues at Gleneagles. Mr Blair is likely to shelve, at least for now, his call for the abolition of the developed world’s $300 billion annual subsidies which make it impossible for African producers to compete.

He accepts that any plan tabled at the World Trade Organisation talks in Hong Kong this December will also have to be accompanied by conditions requiring countries to tackle corruption, become more democratic and be more transparent in their dealings. There is also pessimism over the prospect of making progress on banning arms exports to Africa, or extending aid and debt cancellation.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• The playboy and the Tory party leader
• Bin Laden's family tree is impenetrable jungle
• Paul McCartney