Comment: Ta-ta Tony, Bye-bye Blair - a word of thanks from the bi-national same-sex contingent (Alison Aston)

Dear Tone,

Ten years. Blimey how the time has flown. When you first came into office I was nothing other than a young whippersnapper of a student, complete with bright ideas and severely pickled liver. What did I really know about the ways of the world as I charged my watered down pint to your unfettered success. Yep, you pretty much lost me at hangover.

So I suppose we went our separate ways there for a while. I toddled off to work in media, darling, my head rammed half up my arse and the rest in the clouds - swapping pint glasses for crystal flutes and my cherry red DMs for a bit of the Jimmy Choo magic. All the while, you went about pimping the nation with upbeat chants of Cool Britannica, hanging out with the likes of Noel Gallagher. Life was pretty damn peachy then, all boom, boom, boom and not a lot of bust.

Then I saw her on that dance floor, all big blue eyes and black, black hair. As a single lesbian, it was my very own coup de foudre, California style. Slipping a disc in the process, she swept me off my feet and it was only over a particularly fraught dinner three months later in San Francisco's Phuket Thai restaurant - equal part noodles and tears – that I realised government policy was going to be the unwanted third wheel in our relationship. I would've married her then and there but, of course, the sanctity of marriage wasn't on offer for our sort and nor was the insignificant perk called immigration.

As the girlfriend's homeland appeared to have conveniently forgotten about their forefather's pledge of freedom and justice for all, I was pleased to see that you hadn't forgotten me. Thank you, firstly for amending the Unmarried Partner's Rule giving her the opportunity to move to the UK after we'd spent two years in a relationship akin to marriage. Okay, so it nearly crippled us financially what with me giving up the media high life to do a free internship in the States so that we could accrue the time together, but it was an option at least. And we made it.

What's more, thanks for all the stuff you've done since to make us pink pounders feel part of the parcel, like the introduction of Civil Partnerships amongst other things. Thanks to you, Phuket Thai and other such eating establishments won't have to put up with British lesbians wailing and screaming into their hot and sour soups because they're allowed to bring their women into Blighty lock, stock and turkey baster.

Thanks Tone and toodle pip,

Alison x

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