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Monday, March 16, 2009
Questions for Paddy Ashdown
Tomorrow I shall be interviewing Paddy Ashdown for the May issue of Total Politics. If you have any questions you'd like me to put to him, please leave them in the comments.
In 1997 Tony Blair wangled your support in the case of a hung parliament. In the event he secured a landslide and your party was dumped. How do you feel about the decision in retrospect? And can you offer any argument other than that a lust for Office overcame any judgement you might have made about Mr Blair’s integrity?
Secondly after that debacle, and that of the Lib/Lab pact of 1977/9, and the fact that the Lib Dems have positioned themselves to the left of Labour can you offer any argument to convince Conservatives to wish to have anything to do with Lib Dems – especially if in the forthcoming election we were close to a hung parliament. You might want to support them to secure power for yourselves but it would not completely undermine any remaining political integrity of your party?
Can you ask him what he would do if next General Election produced a hung parliament, if he were still leader of the Lib Dems. Would the Conservartives or Labour be his preferred coalition partner?
The entire parliamentary Lib Dem party, along with 139 Labour MPs and a few odds and sods such as Tories Hogg and Clarke voted against the invasion of Iraq in support of US Shock and Awe 2003.
The impression at the time was of their noble Lib Dem lords being less unanimous and indeed broadly supportive of the creed of liberal intervention. As I recall Lord Tim Garden thought it was wrong only because Syria should have been taken out first, and Lord Paddy Ashdown simply seemed to support the decision.
What does LPA recall of his and other senior colleagues views at the time?
How did these wise old heads advise Charles Kennedy, and was that advice relevant to his apparent shilly-shallying over whether to take part in the protests of 15.02.03 and how to whip the party?
Did that advice contribute to the rather high level of abstention and absenteeism from Lib Dem MPs over the earlier relevant vote?
With the benefit of hindsight how does he see all this and does he still think Blair was right to back the USA. "My special relationship right or wrong"?
If you a want to make things difficult for him, bone up on his cheer-leading for the bombing of Serbia and subsequent High Representative position overseeing the results. Specifically a memoir by Carla del Ponte, former Chief Prosecutor for the UN tribunal "The Hunt: Me and War Criminals" published last year. In brief the whole rational for the bombing was false; there was no 'genocide' in Kosovo. Both Blair and an assortment of cheerleaders including Pants-Down claimed "as many as 225,000 ethnic Albanian men aged between 14 and 59" may have been murdered". Thorough Post war investigations to date have the actual body count at just 2,788 INCLUDING SERBS MURDERED BY THE KLA.
I know you have an aversion to John Pilger, but do yourself a favour just this once and read his article in the New Statesman on the matter. It contains some VERY uncomfortable facts for Paddy Ashdown to wriggle over - if he is made to face them.
Iain, When you can get him away from political point scoring, Ashdown is excellent at strategic thinking. It is that part of his character which needs to be 'tapped into'
Q. How would you deal with illegal immigrants? Would you, for example, support Boris Johnston when he calls for an amnesty?
Q. On Afghanistan where we lost totally over 100 years ago and where the Russians also lost, has the time come for a strategic withdrawal.
Q. Finally, if you were Prime Minister, how would you deal with the major problem of the enemy within - muslim fundimentalism?
In the Geert Wilders affair, just how uncomfortable are you that Lib Dem home affairs shadow Chris Huhne was a cheer leader for the government banning the Dutch parliamentarian?
What the hell happened to the Liberal Democrats? They're the political equivalent of a spoiled voting card these days - when are they going to grow up and become a party rather than a pressure group?
I supported the NATO protection of Kosovars from Serbs. But now Russia cites the independence of Kosovo from Serbia as exactly the same as their support for South Ossetia separating from Georgia. Did you foresee that this would be used against us? We have done the right thing but as long as we fear Russia she now feels she can do what she wants, making at the very least, the Estonians and Ukranians nervous.
Do you think Mladic will ever be found?
Why did you never call Tony Blair on his reneging of your Novosibirsk agreement with him? I remember reading about it in a book?
Iain could you please ask Mr Ashdown this - Do you agree with Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling when they say we are better suited than most other countries to face the recession; or do you agree with most independant economic experts who say we are more vulnerable than most other countries due to our economy's over-reliance on the financial sector and an economy built on debt?
Is there a 'camelot obsession' in British politics? Or more broadly ask about the importance of age and appearance in being a successful party leader. Too much focus on personality? Might give a good insight into his views on Brown/Cameron/Clegg/Cable
In April 2007 Lord Ashdown said "I believe that, for the cohesion of our national unity, it is right that there should be the kind of constitutional arrangements which are now very common in modern democracies, to reflect the fact that Britain, too is a diverse country and to give safeguards and special provisions to the Welsh, Irish and Scots which the English, by virtue of their overwhelming majority in Parliament do not need."
NB. I can document this if required. The misplaced comma is his, not mine.
It is reported that, in his recent book, Lord Ashdown claims responsibility for pushing Tony Blair into honouring the Labour Party's commitment to Scottish and Welsh devolution, about which Blair was unenthusiastic.
First question, therefore: If (when) the United Kingdom breaks up, does he accept that this will be, to a substantial degree, his responsibility?
Second question: He has broken up Serbia, his policies are in the process of breaking up the United Kingdom, what does he plan for the hat trick?
Ask what he intended to say at the Milosevic "trial" about his previous testimony that he had seen Yugoslav troops "cleansing" named villages, while standing on the Albanian border? Milosevic had proven that these villages weren't visible from where he said he saw them because there were mountains in the way. Ashdown promised to appear in court to testify again but unfortunately was poisoned.
I would also ask him if he had known during the Kosovo war, which he spent in Albania presumably in relation to his SBS & "diplomatic" experience, that the drug runners & pimps making up the KLA were already known for killing women, children & babies by cutting them up & selling the body parts abroad? If so had he expected the thugs he was assisting would cease the practice when they were signed in as NATO police?
You could even ask him if he thinks, bearing in mind that even Parliament's Froreign affairs ctte have agreed that war was illegal, whether the most enthuisiastic supporters of it & the genocide caused, should face trial as the Serbs, who were overwhelmingly the victims, did?
26 comments:
Do your pants still fall down?
Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Communist, sorry, Liberal Democrat party.
In 1997 Tony Blair wangled your support in the case of a hung parliament. In the event he secured a landslide and your party was dumped. How do you feel about the decision in retrospect? And can you offer any argument other than that a lust for Office overcame any judgement you might have made about Mr Blair’s integrity?
Secondly after that debacle, and that of the Lib/Lab pact of 1977/9, and the fact that the Lib Dems have positioned themselves to the left of Labour can you offer any argument to convince Conservatives to wish to have anything to do with Lib Dems – especially if in the forthcoming election we were close to a hung parliament. You might want to support them to secure power for yourselves but it would not completely undermine any remaining political integrity of your party?
Can you ask him what he would do if next General Election produced a hung parliament, if he were still leader of the Lib Dems. Would the Conservartives or Labour be his preferred coalition partner?
Does he think Blair lied to him about a possible coalition Government post the '97 election?
The entire parliamentary Lib Dem party, along with 139 Labour MPs and a few odds and sods such as Tories Hogg and Clarke voted against the invasion of Iraq in support of US Shock and Awe 2003.
The impression at the time was of their noble Lib Dem lords being less unanimous and indeed broadly supportive of the creed of liberal intervention. As I recall Lord Tim Garden thought it was wrong only because Syria should have been taken out first, and Lord Paddy Ashdown simply seemed to support the decision.
What does LPA recall of his and other senior colleagues views at the time?
How did these wise old heads advise Charles Kennedy, and was that advice relevant to his apparent shilly-shallying over whether to take part in the protests of 15.02.03 and how to whip the party?
Did that advice contribute to the rather high level of abstention and absenteeism from Lib Dem MPs over the earlier relevant vote?
With the benefit of hindsight how does he see all this and does he still think Blair was right to back the USA. "My special relationship right or wrong"?
If you a want to make things difficult for him, bone up on his cheer-leading for the bombing of Serbia and subsequent High Representative position overseeing the results. Specifically a memoir by Carla del Ponte, former Chief Prosecutor for the UN tribunal "The Hunt: Me and War Criminals" published last year. In brief the whole rational for the bombing was false; there was no 'genocide' in Kosovo. Both Blair and an assortment of cheerleaders including Pants-Down claimed "as many as 225,000 ethnic Albanian men aged between 14 and 59" may have been murdered". Thorough Post war investigations to date have the actual body count at just 2,788 INCLUDING SERBS MURDERED BY THE KLA.
I know you have an aversion to John Pilger, but do yourself a favour just this once and read his article in the New Statesman on the matter. It contains some VERY uncomfortable facts for Paddy Ashdown to wriggle over - if he is made to face them.
What does Mr Ashdown think of the leadership knife-fighting that the LDs have engaged in since he stepped down?
How come the Liberal Democrats seem to be getting rather authoritarian - what's going on?
What does he think of those British citizens who protested against returning soldiers in Luton?
Is there any hope of a victory in Afghanistan or should we just pull our troops out? What are they really there for?
Is Karzai an amateur?
Iain, When you can get him away from political point scoring, Ashdown is excellent at strategic thinking. It is that part of his character which needs to be 'tapped into'
Q. How would you deal with illegal immigrants? Would you, for example, support Boris Johnston when he calls for an amnesty?
Q. On Afghanistan where we lost totally over 100 years ago and where the Russians also lost, has the time come for a strategic withdrawal.
Q. Finally, if you were Prime Minister, how would you deal with the major problem of the enemy within - muslim fundimentalism?
.
Paddy Ashdown
In the Geert Wilders affair, just how uncomfortable are you that Lib Dem home affairs shadow Chris Huhne was a cheer leader for the government banning the Dutch parliamentarian?
What the hell happened to the Liberal Democrats? They're the political equivalent of a spoiled voting card these days - when are they going to grow up and become a party rather than a pressure group?
.
Paddy Ashdown
How many more years do you expect to wait before Lib Dems are in or part of government? In the latter case, does it matter with which other parties?
Paddy Ashdown
Your Lib Dem party was on the left; Nick Clegg’s is on the right. So are the Lib Dems generally happy about that change?
I supported the NATO protection of Kosovars from Serbs. But now Russia cites the independence of Kosovo from Serbia as exactly the same as their support for South Ossetia separating from Georgia. Did you foresee that this would be used against us? We have done the right thing but as long as we fear Russia she now feels she can do what she wants, making at the very least, the Estonians and Ukranians nervous.
Do you think Mladic will ever be found?
Why did you never call Tony Blair on his reneging of your Novosibirsk agreement with him? I remember reading about it in a book?
.
Paddy Ashdown
With their now barking attitude to the EU, is the modern Conservative party “fit for purpose”? Do you think they will find their way back eventually?
Iain could you please ask Mr Ashdown this - Do you agree with Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling when they say we are better suited than most other countries to face the recession; or do you agree with most independant economic experts who say we are more vulnerable than most other countries due to our economy's over-reliance on the financial sector and an economy built on debt?
Please see what Charles Crawford had to say recently about "The Bad Balkan Mice" at:- http://charlescrawford.biz/MSH8MB288721 on 13th March.
That raises questions galore.
What's his view of his new leader?
Does he think Nick Clegg is playing second fiddle to the real star of the Lib Dems Vince Cable?
Would the Lib Dems ever get back into bed with Labour if there was a Hung Parliament?
Question: Mr Ashdown as a former RM officer, what do you think is missing from the current push in Helmand?
Is there a 'camelot obsession' in British politics? Or more broadly ask about the importance of age and appearance in being a successful party leader. Too much focus on personality? Might give a good insight into his views on Brown/Cameron/Clegg/Cable
In April 2007 Lord Ashdown said "I believe that, for the cohesion of our national unity, it is right that there should be the kind of constitutional arrangements which are now very common in modern democracies, to reflect the fact that Britain, too is a diverse country and to give safeguards and special provisions to the Welsh, Irish and Scots which the English, by virtue of their overwhelming majority in Parliament do not need."
NB. I can document this if required. The misplaced comma is his, not mine.
It is reported that, in his recent book, Lord Ashdown claims responsibility for pushing Tony Blair into honouring the Labour Party's commitment to Scottish and Welsh devolution, about which Blair was unenthusiastic.
First question, therefore: If (when) the United Kingdom breaks up, does he accept that this will be, to a substantial degree, his responsibility?
Second question: He has broken up Serbia, his policies are in the process of breaking up the United Kingdom, what does he plan for the hat trick?
Ask what he intended to say at the Milosevic "trial" about his previous testimony that he had seen Yugoslav troops "cleansing" named villages, while standing on the Albanian border? Milosevic had proven that these villages weren't visible from where he said he saw them because there were mountains in the way. Ashdown promised to appear in court to testify again but unfortunately was poisoned.
I would also ask him if he had known during the Kosovo war, which he spent in Albania presumably in relation to his SBS & "diplomatic" experience, that the drug runners & pimps making up the KLA were already known for killing women, children & babies by cutting them up & selling the body parts abroad? If so had he expected the thugs he was assisting would cease the practice when they were signed in as NATO police?
You could even ask him if he thinks, bearing in mind that even Parliament's Froreign affairs ctte have agreed that war was illegal, whether the most enthuisiastic supporters of it & the genocide caused, should face trial as the Serbs, who were overwhelmingly the victims, did?
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