The true cost of politicians' mistakes

Commons July 7th 2016

Paul Flynn (Shadow Leader of the House).

As the Speaker now processes majestically from the Chair to Speaker’s House, I wonder whether he has been issued with a parliamentary umbrella. Last week, I noticed two yellow buckets on the route to collect the rain, and today there is one white bucket. Will the Leader of the House tell us when we are going to get this palace into a habitable state? Can he also remind us which party promised to fix the roof while the sun was shining?

The House is grateful, as ever, to the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke). He is a rarity on the Government Back Benches as a man who is occasionally caught in possession of an intelligent thought, and who speaks real English—the language that the rest of us speak. This week, he gave us vital intelligence on the three remaining candidates for the leadership of the Tory party: one of them is “bloody difficult”; one does not expect to deliver on the extremely stupid things she has been saying; and one would declare war on at least three countries. We have a legitimate interest in this, because the winner of this race will also be the Prime Minister.

I suggest to the Conservatives that they perhaps repeat the great success that they had in Totnes, where they introduced the system of a primary vote in which everyone took part. It would be wonderful to have the chance to write-in a candidate such as the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe. Happily, at his time of life, he has passed beyond the stages of ambition and vanity that afflict many in political life. If he is reluctant to return to the Dispatch Box because he is of a certain age, let me remind him of what I have discovered: the Dispatch Box is a vital support and a wonderful alternative to a Zimmer frame.

Two days next week are given to a matter of the highest importance. Chilcot concluded that the UK chose to join the war in Iraq before the peaceful options were exhausted. We must not let artifice, denial, spin, delusions and expensive barrister-created obfuscation ​mask the vital Chilcot truths. Chilcot concluded that Government, Opposition and three Select Committees of this House were wrong in 2003, and our decisions led to an avoidable war.

Our reputation as politicians fell to rock bottom during the expenses scandal, but since then it has fallen further and it is now subterranean. We need to recognise the whole truths of Chilcot. We should debate this next week in a very serious atmosphere. We did it; the decisions were taken in this House. I and many other Members were here at the time. Our mood should be one of humility, penitence and respect for all those who put their lives at risk at our command.

The dedication, professionalism and courage of our servicepeople were as great and splendid as any in our entire proud military history. We want to express in those two days next week our profound gratitude to all who have given their lives and their service, and who have been maimed in body and mind by the experience of going to the wars, some of which—Kosovo and Sierra Leone—were magnificent achievements in the extension of peace and human rights around the world.

There is another group that we need to bear in mind next week. Our heartfelt sympathy goes out to the loved ones who were bereaved by the war. We saw yesterday that they were forced to revisit their grief with the added pain of the knowledge from Chilcot that their loved ones possibly died in vain. To them, Parliament should offer our regrets and our apologies, because we know that the responsibility was ours. We should hope above all that the spirits of all who died as a result of our decisions may now rest in peace.

Comments

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I wonder what sentence he should receive? We all rightly hate Thatcher, and I reckon she is paying for it now, but I'd like to see developments towards corporeal justice served as soon as possible. Can't say I have much grounds for optimism, but who knows?

The man isn't even sorry and has said so. He left a country in ruins. Chilcot blames him in particular. There must be something to show for that in light of the reports' findings. You can go to jail for shoplifting. What about for pursuing an agenda of war DESPITE the protestations of your peers and the advice of the JIC to see reason? It was in no way reasonable behaviour and the consequences were and still are massive. Instead the man expresses no real remorse and indeed is raking it in off the back of his notoriety. e.g. the American Neocon right who he threw his lot in with all his inhumane zeal.

Lets send him to where he belongs. Lets NOT forget. Maybe there isn't the stomach for it amongst those with the authority to do it. Honestly, I think it would be the best thing all round. Or do we not want to make an expert dissembler stand up as a man, and not as a former Prime Minister? The report has extensively laid the groundwork for the charges.

Its in the public interest, in the interests of justice and in the interests of future generations to have a precedent where one has to be set.

[Paul Flynn]

Thanks Elaine.

Chilcot is much better tan expected. The truth at last.

Paul Flynn MP  

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[Elaine Robinson]

Well done Paul. I was on the anti-war march and was proud to say my MP voted against the war.
I have often wondered if Blair would have been so keen if his son had been in the front line. Bush wasn't keen to be on the front line himself was he?
Let's hope we learn lessons - hard to see many Labour MPs so defiant in the face of the obvious.
Elaine

[Keith Darlington]

Blair largely got away with what he did because his sycophantic acolytes in New Labour nodded through everything without a blink of an eye. They were at it again in the Commons on Wednesday, showing no humility or recognising the the scale of the horror inflicted as a result of this horrific war. I watched the likes of Hilary Benn, Alan Johnson, and Margaret Becket, in the Commons give their reactions to Chilcott and not one of them could bring themselves round to acknowledge the mistakes stated by Chilcott. Rather than acknowledging the truthful, authoritative findings in Chilcott, they were trying desperately hard not to have to criticise their old mate Tony Blair. Indeed, Jonathan Dimblebey said earlier that they normally rush to do Any Questions in the BBC Radio 4 program, but now they are nowhere to be found now, probably after seeing one of their ilk got a grilling on Question Time last night.

In their Commons speeches, all they could do was babble on about how it was good to get rid of Saddam rather than recognise the infinitely worse horror there now. They did not show regret for the 150,000 lives lost according to Chilcott, or the chaos and misery inflicted on the lives of the Iraq population since Blair's war started. Over three million displaced. This is a country where basics like electric, water, and so on hardly exist since the war.Children are kept away from schools because of they fear not getting home alive.

As Chilcot said, Blair was not challenged in part because of his style of government which was not conducive to the opinions of others. These supine Blairite cabinet members probably now realise that criticism of Blair will reflect badly on them and that is why they are desperately trying to defend him now. Shame on them, they should be contrite enough to recognise that Blair is poison to the Labour movement and the quicker they disown him, the better. It is the legacy of Blair which is destroying Labour not Corbyn. Labour will not be able to move on until the Party comes to terms with Blair's Iraq war.