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Blair plans state funeral for Thatcher
 TONY Blair is backing a controversial plan to provide a state funeral for one of the Labour Party's most reviled enemies of recent decades: Margaret Thatcher.
| I didn't even know she was dead. She didn't, either. |
Scotland on Sunday can reveal that civil servants have been working for months on the details of Baroness Thatcher's funeral, even though there is no suggestion the 80-year-old is suffering from any life-threatening condition.
| "Really. I'm quite healthy." |
But Blair believes Thatcher's eventual passing should be marked with the first state funeral for a commoner since Winston Churchill more than 40 years ago. The proposal has astounded constitutional experts, who argue that - royalty aside - the honour is normally reserved for politicians who "saved the country at times of dire need".
| Y'mean like helping to win the Cold War? And beating the Argies? And the First Gulf War? |
The funeral plan has also sparked furious debate at the heart of the New Labour government, with a number of ministers opposing such a mark of respect for a Conservative Prime Minister.
| Thus confirming our suspicions that they lack Blair's class. |
The move is also likely to provoke a furious backlash from the grass roots of the party, where Thatcher is still detested for her stout opposition to the unions and policies in areas including employment, privatisation, gay rights and the Poll Tax during her 11 years in office. One Labour MP last night claimed the proposal proved Blair and his advisers in Downing Street had "finally lost contact with reality".
Posted by: Fred 2006-06-04 |
