. Peter Hain has acted with the utmost integrity and I'm sure he will be found to have acted within the rules when the Electoral Commission and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards conclude their investigation. Therefore, I give Peter Hain my full and unconditional support.David Cameron is correct to call Brown's actions dithering. I can only guess that the reason one or the other of the above statements have not been made is that Gordon is hoping the investigation will drag out until he can reshuffle the cabinet, or he doesn't have the guts to either back or sack Hain.
. Peter Hain and I have discussed the circumstances surrounding the investigation into donations made to his deputy leadership campaign. We both agree that mistakes have been made. Mistakes that are not acceptable from a senior cabinet minister. Peter has asked me to pass on his apologies and has tendered his resignation from the cabinet as of this morning, which, with great regret I have accepted.
Monday, 14 January 2008
Gordon Brown - is he, or is he not, the Prime Minister?
I understand that Gordon Brown has told The Sun that Peter Hain's future as a member of the cabinet is out of his hands. What a peculiar statement. Surely Hain has been carpeted, and just as surely both he and Gordon Brown know whether he is going to be found guilty by the Electoral Commission and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards. They both know the rules. And in that case if Gordon Brown is surely the Prime Minister he should have made one of the two following statements:
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5 comments:
It astonishes me that politicians are not held to account with these kinds of black and white statements. As you say, either he was guilty or not. It undermines civil society when politicians are allowed different rules to those of us working stiffs.
Colin,
I totally agree. When I was in the Navy, I would have to claim for my travelling expenses. If I got it wrong once, whether it was a mistake or not, I would have been sacked immediately. Sounds severe, but it happened to many good men. The government demand those in their employment to expect zero tolerance, but do not expect the same standards from themselves
Part of Gordon Brown's problem is he's running short of Ministers with any sort of seniority to sack. All he will be left with soon will be a bunch of faces that most labour voters don't even recognise.
Mrs SP,
Greed and lust seems to catch most of them out. How do you keep people in power honest?
Ah Steve, if I knew the answer to that question I would be a rich woman indeed.
Checks and balances are the best we have, keep a check on them however high up they are and balance their power with an independant judiciary.
Unfortunately we screwed up this balance by entering the EU and unless we can change it we are doomed to be ruled by unaccountable bureaucrates for ever.
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