BRITAIN: Tony Blair took the first available opportunity after yesterday's renewed attacks on London's transport network to appeal to people to go about their "normal lives" - without being intimidated or looking for scapegoats.
"It is important that we respond by keeping to our normal lives and doing what we want to do because to do otherwise is in a sense to give them the very thing they are looking for," he told reporters.
In practical terms the day's events are unlikely to change what is already a fast-evolving agenda to close legal and other loopholes to make the detection and arrest of would-be bombers or their supporters easier.
Watertight drafting to prevent legislation being overturned in the courts is the government's avowed priority, though parliament - which rose for 80 days yesterday - will be recalled to legislate in September if the police and security services so advise.
Mr Blair will consult opposition leaders again on Tuesday. It is unlikely that discussions under way last night with the security services over plea-bargaining and the use of phone tapping material in court evidence - both controversial - will feature at this stage.
The prime minister was in his office in Downing Street talking with John Howard, his visiting Australian counterpart, at 1.15pm when he was given first reports of explosions half an hour earlier.
Mr Blair went to the Cabinet Office briefing room for a meeting of Cobra, the emergencies committee.
It lasted 20 minutes and was attended by police chiefs as well as cabinet ministers, including Jack Straw, the UK foreign secretary, Charles Clarke, the UK home secretary, and John Reid, the defence secretary.
Alistair Darling and Patricia Hewitt, whose transport and health departments are crucial to effective response policy in an emergency, also attended.
No details or decisions were forthcoming and Downing Street was keen to stress that - apart from cancelling a schools visit in east London - Mr Blair was determined to carry on with his arranged schedule.
That included talks last night with the security chiefs.
Normal business was also the message he wanted to convey on radio and TV news channels amid the chaotic initial reporting of the four separate incidents.
Citing the London United slogan being promoted yesterday by the capital's evening newspaper, he later used a brief, scheduled press conference with Mr Howard to make his point.
"I think that everyone is canny enough to know what these people are trying to do, whoever is responsible for this latest incident, and that is to intimidate people and to scare them and to frighten them, to stop them going about their normal business," he told reporters.
The prime minister again denied that the attacks were a consequence of UK involvement in the occupation of Iraq and insisted that the roots were much deeper.
"What they want us to do is to turn round and say, 'Oh it's our fault'. The people who are responsible for terrorist attacks are the terrorists," he said.
He added: "The one thing that has come across very clearly over the past couple of weeks has been the impact the British attitude has had on the rest of the world where people have seen our country react to terrorists' attacks with great dignity and great strength and great determination."