Criticism of Tony Blair

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Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997-2007

This article's use of the terms Criticism or Controversy in its title may mean the article does not present a neutral point of view of the subject. It may be better to use a different term which offers a broader perspective.

Spin (public relations)

The terms "spin" and "spin doctor" came into widespread use in politics in the 1980s^[1]. Blair has been criticised for excessive use of spin in politics to the point that he was labelled by his predecessor John Major, as "the porn of politics".^[2]. Criticism of Blair's aversion to providing information clearly and completely reached its height with allegations that his Director of Communications and Strategy, Alastair Campbell, had "spun" the Iraq Dossier. The dossier was an important document issued to journalists and used by the government to justify British involvement in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, after failing to secure a mandate from the UN.^[3]

Iraq War

No weapons of mass destruction were ever found in Iraq and subsequently U.S.-led inspections agreed that Iraq had earlier abandoned its WMD programs, although the inspectors asserted Iraq had an intention to pursue those programs if UN sanctions were ever lifted.^[4][5]. Since the presence of weapons of mass destruction used to justify the invasion of Iraq were never found, and since the invasion was not sanctioned by the United Nations, many people^[who?] are of the opinion the invasion was illegal. As a result of this, some have argued that Tony Blair is a de facto war criminal ^[6]. The current British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has set up an inquiry into the Iraq war to cover the period from 2001-2009, originally stating that it would be held in private. However, subsequently, the chairman of the inquiry, Sir John Chilcott, stated that hearings would be in public unless there were "compelling reasons" for witnesses to be heard in private. The enquiry started at the end of July 2009, after the return of most British troops from Iraq.^[7] As part of the enquiry, evidence emerged in the form of a 'secret letter' on 29th November, 2009 revealing that Blair had been briefed eight months before war was declared, by the Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith that the action was a blatant breach of international laws. ^[8]

Journalists and veterans' relatives are pressing for Blair's arrest and prosecution for warcrimes and launching a war of aggression against Iraq.^[9][10]

Cash for honours scandal

Blair came under fire for reportedly selling peerages to wealthy businessmen in return for financial funding for the Labour Party. The Crown Prosecution Service stated on 20 July 2007 that, in their view, they were unable to find enough evidence to bring a successful prosecution against anyone. Although Blair was reported as pleased that charges were not pressed,^[11], he and the Labour party were not exonerated from acting illegally. The decision of the Crown Prosecution Service was made on the basis of a lack of evidence and an assessment of the likelihood of a conviction. Assistant Commissioner John Yates claimed there was "political pressure" applied to him and that "there were ... instances when we received less than full cooperation", though also claiming he did not believe it was "deliberate in its intent." ^[12]

Identity cards

The Identity Cards Act 2006 enabled the Government to introduce national identity cards, and authorised the creation of a National Identity Register on Britain's citizens. Critics of ID cards argue that the Register threatens privacy and civil liberties, and that they could be used to deny access to public services.^[13]

The government maintained that ID cards are crucial in counter-terrorism and crime prevention. However the opinion of many senior staff including ex-cabinet ministers formerly involved with the study, is that these claims are exaggerated ^[14]

Relationship with President George W. Bush

Along with enjoying a close relationship with U.S. President Bill Clinton during the latter's time in office, Blair formed a strong political alliance with President George W. Bush, particularly in the area of foreign policy. At one point Nelson Mandela described Blair as "the U.S. foreign minister."^[15] For his part, President Bush lauded Blair and the UK, saying in his post-September 11 speech that "America has no truer friend than Great Britain."^[16]

U.S. President George W. Bush welcomes Prime Minister Tony Blair back to the Oval Office in the White House for private discussions regarding the Middle East Crisis involving Israel and Lebanon in 2006.

Blair's prompt appearance in Washington, D.C. after the 11 September 2001 attacks played a part in establishing mutual respect between the two leaders. Prior to the Iraq War Blair wished to obtain a second UN resolution following Security Council Resolution 1441 authorizing an invasion of Iraq, but ultimately supported the U.S.-led invasion after they failed to pass a resolution. Critics argue this support provided the fig-leaf of an international coalition as well as military support. Writing in 2005, the former UK ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, accused Blair of being a hawk and of having been insufficiently cautious about the war.^[17] Meyer claimed Blair could have prevented the war if he had acted in the summer of 2002. Journalist Simon Jenkins criticised Meyer's claims as 'naive'.^[18]

In July 2003 the U.S. Congress awarded Blair the Congressional Gold Medal, making him the first Briton since Winston Churchill to receive the award, which is considered the United States' highest expression of appreciation.^[19] The award aroused controversy in the UK. As of August 2005 Blair had yet to collect the medal^[20] though he had already formally accepted the award.^[21]

An open microphone accidentally picked up a private conversation between Blair and Bush at the 2006 G8 summit in St Petersburg. Transcripts of the conversation appeared to show, among other things, that Bush snubbed Blair's offer to visit the Middle East as a mediator in the latest conflict, sending U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice instead.^[22] Bush's greeting of "Yo, Blair" particularly irked the press in the UK.^[23]

His departure

Blair's apparent refusal to set a date for his departure has been criticised by the British press and members of parliament. It has been reported that a number of cabinet ministers believed that Blair's timely departure from office would be required to be able to win a fourth election.^[24] Some ministers viewed Blair's announcement of policy initiatives in September 2006 as an attempt to draw attention away from these issues.^[24]

Criticism by the left

One example is the use of private capital to fund public projects (under the Private Finance Initiative).^[25] Another policy which has attracted criticism is the introduction of independent Trust Schools.^[26]

Alliance with Bernie Ecclestone over tobacco advertising

In 1997, Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone was involved in a political controversy over Labour Party's policy on tobacco sponsorship. Labour had pledged to ban tobacco advertising in its manifesto ahead of its 1997 General Election victory, supporting a proposed European Union Directive banning tobacco advertising and sponsorship.^[27] At this time all leading Formula One Teams carried significant branding from tobacco brands such as Rothmans, Benson and Hedges, West, Marlboro and Mild Seven. The Labour Party's stance on banning tobacco advertising was reinforced following the election by forceful statements from the Health Secretary Frank Dobson and Minister for Public Health Tessa Jowell.^[28] Ecclestone appealed 'over Jowell's head' to Jonathan Powell, Tony Blair's chief of staff, who arranged a meeting with Blair. Ecclestone and Mosley, both Labour Party donors, met Blair on 16 October 1997, where Mosley argued:

"Motor racing was a world class industry which put Britain at the hi-tech edge. Deprived of tobacco money, Formula One would move abroad at the loss of 50,000 jobs, 150,000 part-time jobs and £900 million of exports."^[28]

On 4 November the "fiercely anti-tobacco Jowell" argued in Brussels for an exemption for Formula One. Media attention initially focused on Labour bending its principles for a "glamour sport" and on the "false trail" of Jowell's husband's links to Benetton.^[28] On 6 November correspondents from three newspapers inquired whether Labour had received any donations from Ecclestone; he had donated £1 million in January 1997. On 11 November Labour promised to return the money on the advice of Sir Patrick Neill.^[29] On 17 November Blair apologised for his government's mishandling of the affair and stated "the decision to exempt Formula One from tobacco sponsorship was taken two weeks later. It was in response to fears that Britain might lose the industry overseas to Asian countries who were bidding for it."^[30] In 2008, the year after Blair stepped down as Prime Minister, internal Downing Street memos revealed that in fact the decision had been made at the time of the meeting, and not two weeks later as Blair stated in Parliament.^[31]

References

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