Short tries to give MPs power to veto war plans

[cal04]

Tony Blair's power to send British troops to war will face its most serious challenge yet in the Commons today. Clare Short, who resigned from the Cabinet over the Iraq war, is bringing in a Bill that would compel Mr Blair - and any other Prime Minister - to seek Parliament's consent for any future military action. Her private member's Bill is expected to win substantial backing from MPs in the Commons today, but government business managers will almost certainly use Parliament's complex rules to stop it becoming law. Mr Blair is opposing the measure, which he says would deny British forces the element of surprise that might be vital in some future conflict.

Writing in today's Independent, Ms Short describes the Prime Minister's power to make war as "profoundly undemocratic", and warns "this personalised power leads to ill-considered decisions". She also drops a hint that her Bill has the tacit backing of the Chancellor, Gordon Brown, and the Blairite former cabinet minister Stephen Byers. "Both Gordon Brown and Stephen Byers have said since the Iraq war that Parliament and not the Prime Minister should make the final decision about whether the country goes to war," she writes.

Mr Byers is expected to vote for Ms Short's Bill today, but Mr Brown, as a member of the Cabinet, will oppose the measure in public, whatever his private views. The Short Bill would require the Prime Minister to set out a report to the Commons and the House of Lords saying why he wants to send troops to war. He would also have to cite the legal authority for war - a live issue because of the continuing controversy over the legality of the Iraq war - and give an indication of how long and over how wide an area he expects the war to be fought.

Geoff Hoon, the Leader of the Commons - who was Defence Secretary during the Iraq war - will lead the Government's attack on the Short Bill. He is expected to argue that it would damage military morale if troops went into action against a background of political wrangling in Parliament

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article321153.ece
http://comment.independent.co.uk/commentators/article321110.ece
better hurry up before Syria and Iran are brought up

[Massacure]

1. Surprise isn't a valid point if he exempts deployments of less than 30 day

30 days should be plenty of time to discuss and vote on an issue, especially if it is non-political in nature.

[LynnTheDem]

2. But sending them to illegal war where their CO worries about

being charged with war crimes ("If I go to the Hague, I won't be going alone.") is NOT damaging to their morale???

:rofl:

[Nihil]

3. Hoon is a complete tosser

> Geoff Hoon, the Leader of the Commons - who was Defence Secretary
> during the Iraq war - will lead the Government's attack on the Short
> Bill. He is expected to argue that it would damage military morale
> if troops went into action against a background of political wrangling
> in Parliament

Surely the point is that troops will NOT be sent into action UNTIL the
"political wrangling" - silly details like "is this war legal?" - has
been resolved?

Here's to no more shooting from the hip from Tony boy!
:toast: