29 JANUARY 2010

Tony Blair faces Iraq Inquiry

Today former Prime Minister Tony Blair will face the Chilcott Inquiry into the handling of the decision to go to war against the regime of Saddam Hussein. Tony Blair's legacy as a prime minister has been tarnished because of his decision to take Britain into the Iraq War, with many former Labour supporters, as well as the British public feeling that that the prime minister was duplicitous in regard to the information he used to persuade the case for the war. Many believed at the time that Blair disregarded the UN convention to achieve a Security Council resolution; and the case that was made for the military invasion of Iraq was less as a result of truth of a claim that Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction, and more to do with a sycophantic allegiance by Blair to support George Bush's misguided conviction that Iraq was behind the attacks on the 9/11 destruction of the Twin Towers and the Pentagon.

Statements since the war made by Hans Blix, the UN weapons inspector at the time, said there was 'no compelling evidence' that Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction, and it appears from Tony Blair's own account of conversations with Mr Blix that he focused on the statement that Saddam was not complying with weapons inspectors, rather than the fact that WMD were in fact absent. Many still believe the case for war on Iraq was not made, that the decision was illegal, and that Tony Blair should face criminal proceedings for breaking International law. It is clear from proceedings this afternoon that he is struggling to find legal expert, other than Lord Goldsmith, that support the legality of the war, and the inquiry team are not being captivated by Blair's unquestionable ability to charm support.

Time will tell how history remembers Tony Blair. This morning on Radio 4's Today programme, David Blunkett, ex-cabinet minister and colleague, said he believed Tony Blair will be remembered as the  best prime minister  and stands by his decision to support the case for war. Others, such as Robin Cook and Claire Short, disagreed so profoundly with the Iraq invasion, they resigned from the cabinet.

At Find-Book we compare book prices from across the web to find the cheapest deals, here are just a few of our recommended reads on Tony Blair;

Blair Unbound – by Anthony Seldon
The Blair Years – by Alistair Campbell
Blair - by Anthony Seldon