06 May 2005
Blair bleeds a little more
Tony Blair was returned to power with a greatly reduced majority, the BBC reports. The Labor Party's majority has been reduced from a historic high of 161 seats to a more humbling 66 seats; a fall of 59%. In a reasonably performing economy; in which voters tend to stick with an incumbent, the British people have sent a strong message to their PM.
Contrasted against the election results for Dubya and John Howard in Australia, we can conclude that the British public do care much more about the illegal war in which their leader involved their country. Despite their cousins in the US and Australia voting to endorse the illegal war, the British voters have said notwithstanding the good economic management Blair has exercised, they disapprove of his part in the Iraqi Misadventure.
Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (ie Treasurer), is now in a good position to depose Blair as party leader, and therefore PM. With his personal support within the party at an all time low, Tony Blair will have to work some slippery tricks to hold onto his leadership.
Under the British Parliamentary system, a prime minister serves at the pleasure of his party. For it is the party and its policies which the voters choose to run the country. If the leader of the party then deviates from the policies which got them the vote in the first place, then the party disciplines the leader by replacing him or her. In this case, Gordon Brown is likely to move against Tony Blair sooner rather than later.
The anger within the Labor Party against Blair's conduct burns bright. Senior ministers like Robin Cook and Clare Short resigned because Blair took part in an illegal war. Added to that anger, is the anger of principled civil servants appalled by the wanton abandonment of international rules of conduct in relation to the Iraq War. That's why we saw the leak of a few documents damning Blair's actions just before the election.
Remember that these people did not resign over small issues. They resigned over significant matters of principle. After all, if they were pursuing their own interests, why would they have resigned from a government presiding over a reasonably robust economy?
The best thing they can do for the UK now is to seek Blair's replacement as leader of the Labor Party. It will go a long way towards atoning for the crimes he committed in their name.
Contrasted against the election results for Dubya and John Howard in Australia, we can conclude that the British public do care much more about the illegal war in which their leader involved their country. Despite their cousins in the US and Australia voting to endorse the illegal war, the British voters have said notwithstanding the good economic management Blair has exercised, they disapprove of his part in the Iraqi Misadventure.
Gordon Brown, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (ie Treasurer), is now in a good position to depose Blair as party leader, and therefore PM. With his personal support within the party at an all time low, Tony Blair will have to work some slippery tricks to hold onto his leadership.
Under the British Parliamentary system, a prime minister serves at the pleasure of his party. For it is the party and its policies which the voters choose to run the country. If the leader of the party then deviates from the policies which got them the vote in the first place, then the party disciplines the leader by replacing him or her. In this case, Gordon Brown is likely to move against Tony Blair sooner rather than later.
The anger within the Labor Party against Blair's conduct burns bright. Senior ministers like Robin Cook and Clare Short resigned because Blair took part in an illegal war. Added to that anger, is the anger of principled civil servants appalled by the wanton abandonment of international rules of conduct in relation to the Iraq War. That's why we saw the leak of a few documents damning Blair's actions just before the election.
Remember that these people did not resign over small issues. They resigned over significant matters of principle. After all, if they were pursuing their own interests, why would they have resigned from a government presiding over a reasonably robust economy?
The best thing they can do for the UK now is to seek Blair's replacement as leader of the Labor Party. It will go a long way towards atoning for the crimes he committed in their name.
