Tony Blair: “We were absolutely open with people.”
It’s worth noting Tony Blair’s response to Reg Empey’s claim that “We now know that the foundation of St Andrews was built on lie after lie.”
Here’s what Tony Blair told the Irish Times
“That’s absolute nonsense,” he retorts. “One of the things I have done in the book is that I have tried to be honest. Now what people actually sometimes say is that we want a honest politician.
“They say ‘hey, you are not a saint. That’s not what we expected. It’s not what we should expect’.”
“The St Andrew’s Agreement was not actually one of the examples I would give of stretching the truth at all. We were absolutely open with people. The reason we got the deal was because of the speech that called for acts of completion, which mean that in the end we did come to a very honest position.”
And he’s right. Both NI parties knew exactly what was on the table at St Andrews. And what wasn’t.
Despite Martin McGuinness’ later misunderstanding, his subsequent apparent understanding, his party’s then 5 month sulk as the generals looked over their shoulders, the further processing, and, more recently, threats of political consequences, the passing around of the same script, and, eventually, after another manufactured crisis, [in Feb 2010] the latest [Hillsborough] ‘indigenous’ deal.
In December 2006, post-St Andrews and around the time that Tony Blair admits to “stretching the truth, I fear, on occasions past breaking point”, Mick noted Gerry Adams’ position
Gerry Adams: “I am not in a position to call a meeting. Others are playing politics…” He needs a two thirds majority on the Ard Chomhairle to call a party wide Ard Fheis.
The problem being the conditions his own party had placed on the leadership for calling a special Ard Fheis on policing.
Nothing had changed by the end of the year. At which point Sinn Féin’s Barry McElduff spelt it out
Barry McElduff, a Sinn Fein MLA, said yesterday that his party required a firm date for the devolution of policing and justice powers before it would formally endorse the PSNI.
And, with the smell of “panic” in the air, Tony Blair did the best he could to oblige.
To avoid any confusion, Ian Paisley Snr clarified his party’s position
“I do not agree with the statement of the Prime Minister when he claims that we, the DUP, agreed there could be devolution of policing and justice within a certain time limit,” he said.
“Sinn Fein have said there was a date … this is a completely untrue statement.”
But, as Gerry Moriarty said at the time, “Mr Adams has to jump”.
And jump he did.
Given how important having a deadline on the devolution of policing powers was to Sinn Féin – “British government’s commitment to the devolution of Policing and Justice Powers by May 2008 was central to the decision of republicans” – and the subsequent problems caused when they realised there wasn’t one, you might have thought that Tony Blair’s recent admission to “stretching the truth, I fear, on occasions past breaking point” around that time would have raised a few eyebrows within the party.
So far, they are the only party not to have commented on it.
At the time, of course, the US administration had accepted the DUP’s argument that support for policing was an integral part of any deal.
Topic: Government, Politics
Region: Northern Ireland
It was “Yo Blair” or “Yo bitch”, can’t quite remember.
As opposed to the state terrorism of varying degree’s before and during the conflict Joe.
See these terrorists (sic) that you speak of, when did they do their planning for this task and what forces brought them together? Conversely are they just inherently evil and decided to spontaneously unite and picked on a randon subject to terrorise?
Can anyone beat the hypocrite Galloway’s take on Blair’s book?
“I’m only a quarter of the way through it but I could save you shelling out the half price by telling you that this is the most vainglorious, narcissistic, delusionary, treacherous compendium of words ever compiled in the English language.”
http://tinyurl.com/35snt3j
Gorgeous is probably jealous that he has been outdone, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned George.
Sammy
Glad you are back. Had a wee set to with yir pal Pete on Friday on the issue of whether Blair’s lie retold to the Republican community by Adams in all honesty was in fact gerry’s lie. Some people actually believe Pete’s view has been vindicated by these revelations.
Prionsa,
Why do you consider George a hypocrite? Just curious.
Also—”hell hath no fury like a woman scorned George”—you may be confusing him with a character in a Van Morrison song….
indeed,
i don’t suppose there is any chance of peter letting this go,
the thread must have taken 2/3 hrs to construct with all the hyperlinks.
*shakes head*
Hey ho,
tony,the issue on the horizon is the SF First minister one,
will peteb look to the future as well as the past.?
at least we can say the hillsbourough agreement was one between the parties of the North, which hints that local devolution is working.
PE,
Why thank you kind sir.
re. ‘the lie’
That was my initial thoughts also – surely it shows there was a firm basis for Grizzly’s faith in the Englezes – but as I have pointed out many many times to Pete the Englezes knew SF’s bottom line regarding the Police issue and were always going to meet it i.e. they were highly unlikely to watch the process unravel for want of giving the Unionists a kick up the jacksie – even Posh Boy Davey Camerom (after he was given an inter-contintnetal kick there himself from the quarefellah from Offaly ie Obama) distanced himself from his ‘own’ party UCUNF when Wee Reggie started to go all anti-agreement and making funny-anti-transfer-of-the-police-noises.
But I am a massive fan of the boy George – irrrespective of whether he dresses up like a cat or tucks a few bob in his back pocket – anybody who blows cuban cigar smoke in the faces of American congressmen whilst simultaneously lecturing them on their gung-ho record in international affairs deserves to be cut considerable slack.
I am no great fan of Bertie Ahern and the corruption he presided over, but all sides now admit that the unremitting stream of personal insults and abuse taken by that man from Unionists on all sides was completely outside the experience of partisan United States or UK political experience.
Those in Blair’s Circle, no shrinking violets themselves when it came to dishing out abuse or dissing rivals were actually shocked. That outburst to Blair about his wife being ‘ a painted Jezebel’ must come close to political insult of the year offered to a European Government leader. Given the financial and other dependancy of the Six Counties on ‘The Mainland’ , it must also be in the running for the most stupid remark not only of the year but of the decade!
Of course it all backfired as it got Bertie and co sympathy and understanding and also gave the South, US and UK an insight into the visceral hatred there was for Nationalists in some Unionist Quarters.
Bertie for all his faults was also a good family man that had a close relationship with his parents, both Irish Independence Fight Veterans. The death of his mother occurred at a critical period and except for a few hours of private grief at the funeral, he stayed focussed on the talks so credit where credit is due, Bertie is high up there on the list and let us remember that for him !
One thing that amazed me was Blair’s admission that he didn’t anticipate the effect Al Quida (and Iran) would have.
Did he really have such a short memory that he forgot how a few hundred irregular fighters could hold down thousands of regular troops for decades?
To Big Maggie and Sammy.
It is a wierd one with Galloway. Sure Alan Maskey chased me up on this very issue a wee while ago. It is simple really gorgeous Goerge with whom I pretty much agree with on almost anything you would like to mention is dead against Scottish independence. This has forever puzzled and irked me in equal measure. The slack Sammy mentions cutting him had been stretched to the max and more. Why, when he is all for other wee countries self determination is he so vehemently against his own country enjoying that same ‘privilege’?
Let’s look at the availlable evidence until very recently. He earned his keep in England via the downmarket and very right wing talk radio station that he has his own show on. He also makes a few bob from an Iranian news channel from London. He represented an English constituency and let’s just say that I questioned his motives completely and considered him just to be looking out for himself, lest he be considered a foreigner there post Scottish independence. Considering that he seemed to agree with almost everything the current SNP government have done policywise only adds to the murky waters and my confusion, despite the compulsory and cringeworthy caveats about ‘brigadoon’ etc.
The sad death of Jimmy Reid recently, the fiery socialist and one time labourite turned SNP advocate caused Galloway to spill the beans and show him up for a petty spiteful individual. It turns out that whilst Galloway was Reid’s election agent for the labour party in a head to head fight with the SNP in Dundee in the 70′s he formed his detestation of the SNP. The fact that the SNP beat him allows me to infer that his personal vendetta and dislikes overwhelms reason over such a fundamental issue of what is best for the people of Scotland. Thus it has made me question his motives on other things. What other predjudices affect his positioning on similar fundamental matters?
I imagine the slack that you cut gorgeous may not be so considerable Sammy if something as fundamental as Irish self determination had gorgeous on the side of yir ‘Englezes’ Sammy.
PE,
Scottish affairs I have to admit are a constant source of bemusement to me particulalry in relation to independence (I have raised a few issues of puzzlement regarding attitudes with you previously) but the bottom line is if George is a Scottish Unionist then my slack extends to cover that.
If he started to campaign in support of Irish (Ulster) Unionism then he might start to get on my mammaries as well but I still have him marked down as the most entertaining and able left winger who has the rare ability when in exchanges with those to the right of him to make them look deeply uncomfortable and less in line with the public mood than himself.
JC
‘that he didn’t anticipate the effect Al Quida (and Iran) would have’.
This is absolute self serving nonsense from the boy Tony -he must have been told that hundreds of times by the foriegn offfice in the run up to the war.
It is bit like running over a pedestrian in your car and then claiming in court that you didnt realise pedestrians actually left the footpath to cross he road.