Faith in a decision based on belief

Dec 11 2007 by Andrew Flynn, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

‘Tony Blair should have remembered he was a servant of the democracy which elected him’

I WAS very interested to watch the television programmes devoted to the “Blair Years.”

They were filmed during the last few weeks of his period in the office of Prime Minister allowing him to reflect- and the presenter to comment- on the ten years he was at the top of the political tree in this country.

The series chronicled the good and the bad of the “Blair decade”. It was supplemented by comments from his political friends and enemies giving the viewer an insight into the man himself.

Due to the problems facing the Labour Party at the moment it would be easy to forget the euphoria with which Tony Blair and “New Labour” came to power in the late nineties. The country was tired of the Conservatives who seemed to be lurching from one disaster to another.

The majority of the country felt a change was necessary and Blair seemed to be unlike any politician we had seen during our life time. He was young, articulate, vibrant and had virtually single handed brought his party out of the dark ages. He promised so many things which resonated with the public. A new beginning and a fresh start to politics. The programme attempted to assess how well he delivered on his promises and the highs and lows of a remarkable political career.

The filming highlighted the one thing we should be eternally grateful to him for, the settlement in Northern Ireland. I doubt that any student of history would have contemplated the gap between the two sides could have ever been bridged. The “Province” was seen as an intractable problem which others, considered to be more persuasive and influential than Blair, had tried and failed to resolve.

Against all odds Blair resolved it. He succeeded where a long line of others had failed. I worked for him at the time and know how determined he was and how much his health suffered due to the long days and nights he devoted to this issue. There should be no doubt that his diligence and tenacity at that time saved pain and suffering for countless people.

His intervention in other disputes across the world were also seen as positive as was the way in which he dealt with the aftermath of the death of Princess Diana and the terrorist attacks on London. However, the last programme was devoted to the war in Iraq.

Blair was more ill at ease when discussing this subject than any other during the many hours of filming. He had to admit the evidence on which he based his decision to invade Iraq was flawed. He conceded it was an unpopular decision with the House of Commons and one which many of his close allies and confidants voiced against. He admitted he had supported George Bush, the President of the USA, against the wishes of the international community which has subsequently put this country at a disadvantage in other negotiations. He recognised the public of this country were against the invasion, the strength of which was marked by marches and protests by millions.

Yet, despite all of these factors he went ahead, his reason for doing so, religion. Blair was extremely uncomfortable talking about his beliefs. He said they transcended everything in his life but he had kept them to himself because he thought it would have been unpopular to declare them when he was in office. He virtually admitted that he knew what he was doing was risky but his religious beliefs were so strong they drove him on. Although everyone advised him against it and those who elected him were strongly against it his belief in God and doing the right thing was so strong he went ahead anyway.

He conceded that hundreds of thousand of lives had been lost due to his decision and the citizens of this country are under greater threat than for many years. But he was unshakeable in the decision he took because he was sure it was “the right one”.

His certainty of right based on religion worried me. The reason our lives are so vulnerable to terrorist attacks at the moment is because of the extremist views of religious zealots. There is no logic in their thinking merely a blind belief they are rights and those who disagree with them are wrong. I never thought I would hear a British Prime Minister relying on the same rhetoric to support his unpopular decisions.

Unlike the dictator and religious extremists he set himself against, Tony Blair should have remembered he was a servant of the democracy which elected him and that if he wished to base his decisions on religious grounds he should have joined the church and preached from the pulpit not abused his high office to the detriment of us all.