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| Britain |
| Second minister quits over Iraq |
| 2003-03-18 |
| Tony Blair has been hit by another resignation from his Government over the looming war against Iraq, with Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, junior health minister, announcing he is stepping down. Lord Hunt? Must resist name jokes... The Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott, on Radio 4 this morning asked "Who's Hunt?". He's been in the cabinet for four years, but even the Deputy PM hadn't noticed him till now... Later today the Prime Minister will face another major backbench revolt when MPs are given the chance to vote on war with Iraq. This could be the biggie revolt. Up to half the Labour backbenchers might rebel, and Blair could be reliant on the Tories for a Commons majority supporting his stance on Iraq. He doesn't need a commons vote to go to war, but politically his prospects hang in the balance... Clare Short, International Development Secretary, said this morning she would also be making a statement later about her future after spending the night reflecting on her position. It is expected that she will now stay in Government. And she will. Ms Short said last week that military action against Iraq without a second UN resolution would be "reckless". But not half as reckless as openly insulting your boss, the Prime Minister, only to realise within 24 hrs that it wasn't such a good idea. Mr Blair is facing probably the largest backbench rebellion of his premiership tonight, with up to 120 MPs queuing to sign an anti-war motion tabled late last night. This morning, after handing in his resignation, Lord Hunt said: "I'm under no illusion about the nature of the regime led by Saddam Hussein. I recognise the tremendous efforts made by the Prime Minister and other ministers to try and secure a second resolution. "But I do not feel we are justified in taking pre-emptive action without broad international support, or the clear support of the British people. "I'm also concerned about the long-term consequences for international stability of such pre-emptive action." "No! Don't challenge the status quo! I'm frightened, mummy..." Also speaking this morning, Robin Cook, who resigned yesterday as Leader of the House of Commons, said that it was "very much" in Britain's interests that it was part of an international community governed by rules. Rule no. 1: Become a homicidal tyrant if you want long-term job security. Mr Cook, whose powerful resignation statement won him a rare round of applause from MPs last night, said: "We are not a superpower. We cannot go it alone. We need to have alliances but it is also very much important to British domestic opinion. British domestic opinion wants to make sure that it does have a broad coalition behind it. What saddens me most when I look back over the past year — a year ago we had a broad international coalition much wider than I would ever have dared hope for to fight international terrorism. I think it is a tragedy, a mistake that we have allowed that great coalition to fall apart." So, the world according to Robin: The UK is weak and impotent, but nevertheless we need powerful superpower allies, preferably not the US. The anti-terror coalition has boiled down to a few genuinely comitted states because the US has actually followed through on its stated objectives whereas other allies considered lip service after 9/11 to be quite sufficient, thak you very much. Thank God Tony pulled him out of the Foreign Office in 2001. |
| Posted by:Bulldog |
| #13 Thanks,Bull That MP thing is where I would get lost.Kinda like calling our Sen/H.ofReps congresspersons(gotta be PC).But the Brits include the executive branch. |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-03-19 06:36:49 |
| #12 Bubba is doing what Senator Wifey did. Ride on the war wave to avoid being lumped with the looney left Dems who will be toast after this Iraqi thing is over. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-03-18 17:38:18 |
| #11 Bill and the Dixie Chicks seem to save their best lines for overseas. For Bill to put that editorial in the NYT would be a slap that many Dems would not be able to handle. |
| Posted by: john 2003-03-18 14:49:44 |
| #10 BTW, Clinton, writing in al-Guardian, basically said "trust Tony Blair" Wow! He managed to, on the one hand, resolve his fencesitting by coming out squarely for war, while at the same time basically slapping Bush in the face by focusing on his (Clintons's) trust for a foreign leader. Masterful Clintonism, I must say. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-03-18 11:54:08 |
| #9 Bulldog--Gotcha. I thought that was the case, but wasn't sure. |
| Posted by: James Joyner 2003-03-18 11:07:21 |
| #8 James, They're all MPs (Members of Parliament)- backbenchers, PPSs, junior ministers, cabinet ministers, all the way to the PM. They're all MPs. When David said the PPSs weren't paid, he meant they receive no supplement to their basic MP's salary, unlike the junior ministers-upwards. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-03-18 10:39:32 |
| #7 A pretty minor flap. Really, considering the leftish bent of most Labourites, I'm surprised Blair has held his party together as well as he has. I'm a bit confused about the "unpaid" bit. Are the junior cabinet members not also MPs? |
| Posted by: James Joyner 2003-03-18 10:29:18 |
| #6 Blair looks safe (watching live on CNN). The Conservatives are staying solid on the war issue, even passing up opportunities to heap shit on the gov't. I just wish the opposition here in Australia was as honourable. As Winston Churchill once remarked, no war takes precedence over party politics in Canberra (well, he put it differently, but that's what he meant). It occurs to me that both Britain and Australia have been lucky in their leaders during this crisis. |
| Posted by: parallel 2003-03-18 08:12:22 |
| #5 I realize it creates a temporary broo-ha-ha and allows the ex plenty of spare time to grind his axe for the next election - but in terms of governing - it seems like a GOOD thing that openly hostile ministers exit stage left. Tony has proved himself a leader, not just a politician. I bet once the sting wears off he'll be happy to be rid of the undermining sob. |
| Posted by: becky 2003-03-18 07:34:04 |
| #4 Yep, sorry David, my bad. One step down from the actual cabinet. Even more of a nobody. Murat: there are 25 cabinet ministers, including the PM. You can kee track of them here. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-03-18 07:12:29 |
| #3 Actually, since Lord Hunt was a junior minister, he was not in the Cabinet. There are three levels in the Government in Britain. The lowest are the Parliamentary Private Secretaries. They are unpaid aides to ministers; whilst the job is unpaid, it is the first stepping stone into the Government. The middle level are the junior ministers. They are actually paid for their troubles, but are not in the Cabinet. The Cabinet ministers are the most senior. In wartime, there is often a fourth tier. That is a War Cabinet, comprised of senior Cabinet ministers. A War Cabinet will almost certainly be formed when things kick off later this week. |
| Posted by: David Newton 2003-03-18 06:24:05 |
| #2 Make that three, Blair lost three of his ministers. How many ministers are there? |
| Posted by: Murat 2003-03-18 06:09:19 |
| #1 If anyone wants an English version of the last comment, it should be: So, the world according to Robin: The UK is weak and impotent, but nevertheless we need powerful superpower allies, preferably not the US. The anti-terror coalition has boiled down to a few genuinely committed states because the US has actually followed through on its stated objectives, whereas other allies considered lip service after 9/11 to be quite sufficient, thank you very much. Thank God Tony pulled him out of the Foreign Office in 2001. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-03-18 04:28:15 |