Tony Blair met the 100th British soldier to die in the Iraq war during his recent trip to Basra.

The Prime Minister was pictured smiling alongside Corporal Gordon Pritchard at Basra airbase as he visited troops in a visit to boost morale and thank soldiers.

Downing Street refused to comment on whether Mr Blair had sent his personal condolences to Corporal Pritchard's family. Meanwhile Jack Straw hinted that some British troops could be withdrawn from Iraq before the end of the year. He said he expected "good news" from talks with Iraqi officials on handing over control of some regions to home-grown forces.

Insisting no one had died "in vain", Mr Straw rejected calls for a timetable to be set for withdrawal but told BBC Radio 4 that progress was being made. He said: "What we can and are doing is in active discussions about how we draw down our troops on a province by province basis as we and the Iraqi government are convinced it is safe for them and for us to do so. And I think we will see, over the next 12 months, some good news in that respect."

Corporal Pritchard was one of the first British troops to cross the border into the scruffy border town of Umm Qasr at the start of the invasion of Iraq in 2003. The 31-year-old father of three, who was born in Edinburgh, died yesterday after being blown up in an ambush on the streets he helped to liberate.

Corporal Pritchard was one of a number of servicemen and women who chatted to Mr Blair only days before Christmas. Mr Blair was photographed standing next to him in front of a tank at Shaibah logistics base.

Today, the soldier was described by his commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Ben Edwards, as having the "intelligence, professionalism, compassion and humour" to make it to the highest levels.

He served in the Scots Dragoon Guards and was leading a convoy of three armoured Land Rovers which was delivering food and water to British troops in the port town when it was hit by a remote-controlled bomb, at 8.34 am.

Corporal Pritchard’s wife and their children, who are all under 5, have been living with relatives in the West Country since he was posted to Iraq from their home at an army base at Hohne in Germany. His parents, who live in Edinburgh, were being comforted by friends after being told of the death of the son who always wanted to be a soldier.

They said that he had been "the epitome of a modern, professional soldier". "He was a well-trained, well-motivated soldier serving in a regiment that he was extremely proud of, as did his father and elder brother. He was a loving son, and a very proud family man, and he will be deeply missed by us all."

Corporal Pritchard was the second British soldier to be killed in Iraq in two days. On Monday Lance Corporal Allan Douglas, 22, was shot dead by a sniper outside a police station near al-Amarah in Maysan province, the first British soldier to be killed in two months.

His parents joined other bereaved families in calling for troops to be pulled out. "Allan used to love the Army, but as soon as he went to Iraq that changed," said Walter Douglas, 54. "He didn’t think it was our war to fight but he knew it was his duty. Tony Blair has got blood on his hands."

Of the 100 soldiers who have died in Iraq, 77 have been killed in action, while 23 have died of illnesses, vehicle accidents and other non-combat injuries.