'Cherie will write her story in responsible way'

In comments that will be interpreted as a plea to Mrs Blair not to damage Gordon Brown's government with her revelations, the Cabinet minister said: "She is as entitled as anyone else to talk about her experiences. Most people who do so tend to do so in a responsible way. I'm sure she will." Ms Kelly was speaking exclusively to the Evening Standard in her first interview since becoming Transport Secretary.

Looking ahead to next week's Labour conference, the former "Blair babe" said she believed the public had been eager for the transfer of power from Tony Blair to Mr Brown this summer. "I think the country felt there was a need for change and Gordon very effectively represented that change," she said.

Asked if the mood around the Cabinet table had improved over the summer, she added: "To have Gordon at the helm is an incredibly positive thing and people are buoyed up by that."

Ms Kelly rejected calls for a ban on strikes by Tube workers. She said: "You have to be careful in a democratic society about banning strikes." But she condemned as completely unnecessary the recent RMT action.

Ms Kelly revealed she wants to transform the Department for Transport by putting the environment on an equal footing with its traditional role.