Mr Howard was right to speak out on Iraq - despite objections from his own party

When Michael Howard wrote in The Independent last week that the Prime Minister should strive for more "candour" in his relationship with President Bush, he no doubt hoped this would exert pressure on the Government in the run-up to next month's local and European elections.

When Michael Howard wrote in The Independent last week that the Prime Minister should strive for more "candour" in his relationship with President Bush, he no doubt hoped this would exert pressure on the Government in the run-up to next month's local and European elections. What the Leader of the Opposition probably did not expect is that his view would lead to an outbreak of dissent within his own party. But that has been the effect. His predecessor, Iain Duncan Smith, is said to think Mr Howard's move was "not too clever". Another MP, Robert Jackson, has called his leader's stance "slippery and evasive". Other senior Tory voices are grumbling too. After a long honeymoon, Mr Howard has managed to resurrect the Tory party's curious tendency to fight one another, rather than the Government.

The opprobrium that Mr Howard has attracted from the rest of the political spectrum was more predictable. Charles Kennedy feels that the Tories are attempting to steal some of his party's anti-war thunder before polling day on 10 June. Of course, he is justified in pointing out that the Liberal Democrats alone among the major political parties objected to the invasion of Iraq before it happened, but not in castigating Mr Howard for drawing attention to the folly of what has happened since. Those who supported the removal of Saddam Hussein are entitled to criticise the failure of the American administration to make adequate plans for the aftermath of the invasion. And Mr Kennedy should welcome the Tory party's willingness to take a grown-up attitude to the "special relationship" rather than pour scorn upon it. If only the Tories had followed the lead of the Liberal Democrats sooner, he might justly add.

As for the Labour Cabinet ministers who have been trooping through broadcasting studios to denounce Mr Howard's "opportunism" in the last week, they might reflect that the Tory leader has merely articulated what many within their own party - and the country at large - feel. By his refusal to show any sign of divergence whatsoever from the US President's policies, Mr Blair is jeopardising the prospects of stability in the Middle East. It is impossible to know what is discussed behind closed doors, but there has been no evidence that Mr Blair has influenced the thinking of the President one iota in recent months. The "special relationship" seems to amount to very little when it comes to tangible British influence on the world's one remaining superpower.

This is an issue of such seriousness that it ought to transcend domestic political rivalries. That is the view of Christopher Meyer, Britain's former ambassador to Washington, and a man untainted by political allegiances. In his words: "Downing Street's mantra has always been 'total support in public and total candour in private'. Well, we have had, as near as damn it, total support in public, but I don't think we had always enough candour in private."

There are worse accusations that can be levelled against a party of opposition than "opportunism". And, leaving the accusations of politicking aside for a moment, the points raised by Mr Howard merit a full hearing. He is right to argue that the UK should have appointed a deputy to the head of the Coalition Provisional Authority; right, too, to point out that the British people have been given almost no details about the handover to an interim Iraqi authority on 30 June.

Those Tories who are grumbling about their leader's bout of boldness should bear in mind that they are still a considerable distance from being seen as a credible alternative government. Their plans for public service reform, in so far as we have heard about them, are half-baked and timid. Mr Howard was handed down a poor policy legacy from his predecessor - most notably, opposition to tuition fees and unquestioning support for Mr Blair's Iraq adventure. If the Tory leader re-orientates his party, Conservative MPs who are serious about regaining power should support him.