Open Letter to Sir George Young on Iraq (North West Hampshire Liberal Democrats)

North West Hampshire Liberal Democrats <info@nwhantslibdems.org.uk>

Open Letter to Sir George Young on Iraq

October 21, 2004 4:59 PM

It has been announced that parliament will debate "Defence in the World" Thursday 21st October. The now found false reasons for going to war in Iraq, the prosecution of the war to date and the recent announcement that a battle group (Black Watch) from the British Forces in Southern Iraq may be moved north for operations near Baghdad have all caused significant national and local concerns.

Martin Tod A constituent in NW Hampshire recently e-mailed Sir George Young asking him "please do all you can to prevent our troops being used in this politically motivated deployment"

In an open letter to Sir George Young MP, Martin Tod writes:-

"Dear Sir George,

I am writing to ask you to back the Liberal Democrat call for a parliamentary vote on committing British troops to a new area in Iraq and to ask for your support for that vote to take place as soon as possible.

The Liberal Democrats' position on this war is well-known, and while I know you backed Tony Blair in his decision to invade Iraq, I'm asking that this time you oppose his plan to deploy troops into an area currently occupied by the Americans and outside the British zone.

In a web-site posting on March 19th, 2003, shortly before the war began, you wrote:

When I voted a fortnight ago, I was assured that I was not voting for war. I would have another opportunity. Robin Cook assured the House of Commons that the last vote "was not a trap." However you were misled. You went on to write:

But now it looks as if I will not get the opportunity to vote until after British troops have been mobilised and their lives have been put at risk - or at the point when their commitment is inevitable. You then argued that your final vote for war was driven by a requirement to show support for those North West Hampshire constituents in the services.

Time has moved on, and the situation in Iraq now is far worse than almost anyone could have imagined. As I see it, the current situation now poses three critical questions:

1. Are you confident that failure to ensure a vote on this first redeployment into U.S. controlled areas will not be a first step towards further moves of British troops into more dangerous areas without adequate parliamentary scrutiny?

2. Whatever reassurances you may receive from the Government on this question, they misled you before. Are you confident that the Government will not mislead you again?

3. Finally, do you believe that further moves of British troops, including local constituents, into more dangerous areas vacated by the U.S. are in the interests of those constituents or of the U.K. as a whole? Is backing this deployment the most effective way to show support for our forces?

We disagreed on whether to back Tony Blair and George Bush at the start of the war. You backed them: I did not. I hope that this time we can agree on the need to oppose them.

The Bush/Blair plan for Iraq is in crisis. The United States appear to no longer have the forces in Iraq necessary to defend their own zone of control and require British assistance. Little by little, more and more British troops are being committed for longer and longer in ever more dangerous areas and situations.

The Labour Government must be brought to their senses. I ask you therefore to back the Liberal Democrats' call for an urgent vote and to join them in opposing the Government's proposals for further troop deployment.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Tod,

Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidate

North West Hampshire"