Tony Blair gave the first of his new-style television media briefings on Thursday. Here's a flavour of the exchange between prime minister and journalists.

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American journalist: I pay a lot of British taxes and I don't mind paying taxes for hospitals and schools.

But I was surprised to see that my taxes are going to support a bunch of the Queen's cousins who live in palaces for almost nothing.

Can you explain the principle of why it is fair for working people to subsidise a lavish lifestyle for these folks because they were born in the Queen's family?

Tony Blair: Now you're an American, aren't you, Tom? But I think I'm going to beat a diplomatic silence on that particular one if I may say so.

Why? Because I think it is probably the sensible thing to do in all the circumstances.

But I'm pleased at least that you approve of the money that's going into the schools and hospitals, which ultimately is on a vastly greater scale than any money going to the Royal Family.

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Journalist: How does allowing cabinet ministers to make almost hysterical attacks on the media help you to sell your message to the British people?

Where does the insanity lie there?

Tony Blair: Maybe we should take time out on each other's hysteria if you put it like that.

I think the most important thing, as I said to you before, is that I would not place too much significance on any remarks but just go back to debating policy.

That is what in the end your readers want to know about, what we want to talk about.

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Journalist: Why do you think you should be taken seriously when you call for a negotiated settlement in Kashmir when within recent months your government has been authorising rocks, bombs and missiles to both sides.

Tony Blair: Because the idea that we shut down our defence industry in these circumstances I find absolutely bizarre.

The face of the matter is that's not what is stimulating the conflict in Kashmir. What is stimulating the conflict in Kashmir is the sources of that conflict that we know about.

The idea that the reason we have got the conflict in Kashmir is that both sides have British weapons honestly is not the case...