The Foreign Secretary

The latest attack on the Foreign Secretary for daring to take a holiday in August is bizarre given all the more important things we should be talking about.

It emerges he was of course staying in regular touch with the office from holiday. What was wrong with asking a Minister on duty in his department to make a call to an Afghan government Minister that officials wanted? As it turned out that government would prove to both powerless and short lived anyway. You cannot organise contingencies for the collapse of a government by agreeing with the government about to collapse. If the government had been stronger you did not need the contingency plan for its demise.

 

Postscript. It now emerges the Junior Minister did not make the call. It is not clear if this was because officials could not arrange one anyway or if it was decided it was pointless. Talking to a Minister in a government about to collapse would not have changed the arrangements the UK for rescue.

45 Comments

  1. William Long
    August 19, 2021

    I agree; all it does is expose the small minds of the complainants. I regard it as a positive that the Minister has sufficient confidence in his staff to leave them in charge.

    1. Mockbeggar
      August 19, 2021

      I notice that in the debate yesterday, there were quite a few empty seats on the opposition benches. Were they on holiday? Spain? Italy? Croatia? France?

    2. MiC
      August 19, 2021

      I wonder what you and John would have said if it were a Labour FS who did alike under these circumstances?

      Reply The same. In all the years I was opposing Labour governments I did criticise a Minister for taking a holiday.

      1. MiC
        August 20, 2021

        However, in all the years that you opposed Labour governments there was never a situation quite like this, was there, John?

        1. Peter2
          August 20, 2021

          What, where an American President fails to plan an exit and fails to inform his allies?

  2. formula57
    August 19, 2021

    The amount of energy and enthusiasm that now goes into producing faux outrage, self-serving and hypocritical as it typically is, is staggering. Alas, so goes the modern world.

    There was more on show when the Foreign Secretary, hampered so I understand by time constraints and the Speaker’s management, omitted to refer to Mr. Tugendhat’s less than germane speech in his response. It further points to how little is the contribution from those now raging about Afghanistan.

  3. Sea_Warrior
    August 19, 2021

    Sir John, I am unswayed by this defence of a colleague. Under pressure from Major Shorthouse, Sir Sydney Roughdiamond understood the importance of personal presence and prompt action – but politicians don’t seem to these days. I suspect that most warriors watching government action over the weekend will have thought that Raab should have been 32 Squadroned back to London. After all, ministers wouldn’t hesitate to expect warriors to cancel their leave to sort out another mess created by politicians.

    1. No Longer Anonymous
      August 19, 2021

      +1

    2. Mark Thomas
      August 19, 2021

      I am sure Sir Sidney Ruff-Diamond would take offence at the miss-spelling of his name. However you are correct about his understanding of the importance of personal presence and prompt action, as well as his and Lady Ruff-Diamond’s stoicism while under fire.
      Now we must await the outcome of negotiations between the Khasi of Kalabar and the leader of the insurgents Bungdit Din.

      1. Sea_Warrior
        August 19, 2021

        I apologise fo my Rank stupidity.

      2. SM
        August 19, 2021

        My goodness, that was truly the British Empire ‘carrying on’ at its best, wasn’t it?

    3. rose
      August 23, 2021

      Surely it was better to stay put while the airport was being secured rather than go out of communication on the long journey home? Getting the airport secured was after all the top priority.

      I should like to know who is trying to get rid of the Foreign Secretary. The FO is stuffed with left wing remainiacs and this story about a compulsory personal telephone call to someone who had packed his bags and fled is bizarre. The media really are scraping the barrel. No-one behaved like this in August 1990 when everyone was likewise on holiday.

  4. Micky Taking
    August 19, 2021

    But the reported response was ‘he’s unavailable’. Was that Raab disconnecting access to himself? A spokesperson freeing him from the call?, which brings into question authority to decide that.

  5. agricola
    August 19, 2021

    Mischief making, pathetic.

    1. MiC
      August 19, 2021

      He says, after cheering forty years of mischief-making over the European Union, day, after day, after day…

      1. Fedupsoutherner
        August 19, 2021

        MIC.Not Brexit and the EU again? You need help. Yawn.

        1. MiC
          August 20, 2021

          The issue is the mischief-making and the hypocrisy, not the matter over which it was made, but as ever you ignore the point.

    2. Nota#
      August 19, 2021

      @agricola +1

  6. jerry
    August 19, 2021

    The Foreign Secretary hasn’t been attacked for taking a holiday, he has been attacked for taking one outside the UK (given the likelihood of such events unfolding during August, give the USA withdrawal time-line), and for not returning home immediately once Boris’s Afghan blunder started to unfold, why did the UK pull our forced out before we had got all UK citizen who wanted to leave out, why have we abandoned so many Afghan citizens who assisted the UK and other NATO forces? I would have more sympathy for the govt, the the Foreign Secretary, if something more unpredictable had occurred…

    1. Know-Dice
      August 19, 2021

      I tend to agree with you over this matter Jerry.
      It was clear for at least 10 days before the fall of Kabul that things were not going well there and that should have started alarm bells ringing.

      And we now hear that the Taliban are rounding up collaborators…

      1. Micky Taking
        August 19, 2021

        ‘collaborators’ seems an unworthy name for supporters of government and peace-keepers.

        1. Know-Dice
          August 20, 2021

          My fault…
          I should have put “collaborators” as this was the term used in the UN report on this matter…

  7. Nota#
    August 19, 2021

    Yes as you say Sir John its bizarre, churlish even.

    What would have changed if he was at home in the UK – nothing
    What could have done if he was at home in the UK – nothing

    That is without taking into my beef with the UK Government, they have removed the UK’s capability to respond to anything. Ministers are reduced to talking head and grand gestures on a good day.

    1. Nota#
      August 19, 2021

      Nota# – if we really had a UK PLC the shareholders would be screaming for the removal of the CEO for making us this vulnerable. We of course get the opportunity of sorts come election time, but to achieve the objective the whole board must loose its seats. That is over kill to solve a problem of one persons ego – but that’s the UK system.

  8. Len
    August 19, 2021

    I have been feeling sick all day watch you bunch of warmongers in parliament.

    You all must go.

  9. Len
    August 19, 2021

    So Biden says he warned the Afghan army with the best weapons in the world. 300.000 men with US equipment verses 58000 Taliban peasants. So where are all these weapons now? This is what they did in Gaza, armed the PLO with the best American weapons and then Hamas took over and inherited them all.

  10. Len
    August 19, 2021

    You are all collectively utter morons and within 10 years you will all have to find real jobs
    Yes real jobs. Now piss off.

    1. Sea_Warrior
      August 19, 2021

      Must we have bad language infecting this site, Sir John?

    2. formula57
      August 19, 2021

      I suspect someone has overdosed on the muesli today, Sir John.

    3. MiC
      August 19, 2021

      That’s the spirit.

  11. Alan Jutson
    August 19, 2021

    It makes headlines, that is all that seems to matter these days.

    From past experience it does not even matter if the headlines are true or false. It all helps feed the public desire for constant 24 hour news.
    If nothing is happening then they make something up or resurrect a new spin on an old story.

    1. Nota#
      August 19, 2021

      @Alan Jutson, +1. yes it would appear a Governments duty has moved from ensuring the safety and security of the Country – to ensuring a grandstanding headline, finding ways to blame others for their ineptitude. In the round that means the get well paid to do nothing. In the real World you couldn’t make it up

  12. Len
    August 19, 2021

    John, the CIA have had 20 years to bribe Taliban leaders. My army contact in Afghanistan was told by his CIA friends years ago that they know where they live and they are all being bribed by the CIA.

    So no need to increase ‘aid’ to the Taliban.

  13. Ian Wragg
    August 19, 2021

    An utter shambles. The waste of over 400 British lives.
    Back to the stone age for Afghanistan.

  14. Donna
    August 19, 2021

    The criticism shouldn’t be the fact that Raab took a holiday. The criticism should be that since he is a senior Minister in a Government which has spent the past 18 months removing our Civil Liberties over a Low Consequence Infectious Disease and which effectively prevented millions of Brits from going abroad, he should have followed his own Government’s “advice” and taken a staycation.

    More hypocrisy from Ministers who believe it’s one rule for us and a completely different one for them.

  15. Everhopeful
    August 19, 2021

    Sorry.
    None of them should have a holiday.
    Never.
    Ever.
    Not after what they have done!

  16. Sakara Gold
    August 19, 2021

    Indeed. Raab made sure that all his Kabul diplomats, miltary attaches’ and the embassy spooks were on the first flight out to Brize Norton. What more could the country expect of him, as he was on the beach somewhere? Clearly this is not a resignation issue. The Taliban will find our loyal and brave translators for us

  17. Lisa
    August 19, 2021

    Yes perhaps we should be discussing the criminal nature of the invasion and occupation of Afghanistan? Or maybe the delight of ministers that they can import thousands more people with entirely different and incompatable cultures?
    I think the focussing on trivialities by the media is entirely planned because the alternative would lead to many politicians being in deep trouble.

  18. Andy
    August 19, 2021

    Everybody is entitled to a holiday.

    But those who seek great offices of state never get to leave the job behind. It always travels with them. Nobody made Mr Raab do this job. Many of us would have been content to see him in the anonymous lower/middle management job more suited to his skillset from which he could take a proper break without being missed by anyone. Unfortunately for our country that was not his career choice.

    Brexitist Mr Raab has never been a competent minister but on this occasion when his input was needed he was literally asleep on the sun lounger. His lack of action is shameful.

    I doubt Raab will be sacked – every level of incompetence, malpractice, dishonesty and corruption is acceptable to this useless prime minister. But it just further embarrasses our country and adds to the growing list of ministers in this Cabinet who are unfit to serve.

    1. Micky Taking
      August 19, 2021

      I wonder what your English teacher made of your constant misuse of ‘literally’?
      Despair, I shouldn’t wonder.
      And it wasn’t his input required, it was his output.

  19. Ed M
    August 19, 2021

    I couldn’t care less about the Foreign Secretary going on holiday or not or whether he’s been criticised or not. Who cares?
    The important thing is that we should never have entered this stupid war in the first place. Terrorists can train anywhere in the world. Sending troops to a really hostile environment like Afghanistan isn’t going to stop terrorism.
    At some point, the politicians had to pull the troops outs. It just happened to be Biden. Did he do it well? In the big picture, whether he did it well or not is nothing compared to the disaster of Bush / Blair sending troops to Afghanistan in the first place.
    Same for Foreign Secretary and Boris. Not a lot they can do about it. Not their fault ultimately. But Bush’s and Blair’s.

  20. No Longer Anonymous
    August 19, 2021

    The attack on the FS is the Left flailing around because the Biden Presidency is hanging on a thread after a few months.

    No scrutiny of Biden or his medical condition from the BBC.

    Bias beyond belief.

  21. Duyfken
    August 19, 2021

    As one who has long thought Raab to be a good potential PM, and we certainly need a replacement, I am less than impressed with his apparent performance as Foreign Secretary. Pedestrian is my evaluation.

  22. MFD
    August 20, 2021

    Sir,
    May I suggest that we Brits need to put an end to far left journalist governance of our country- it is our destruction they plan.

    They must be stopped from rhyming on and on to get rid of elected ministers. They have no electoral mandate and must be crushed totally for the good of our great country.

  23. Nota#
    August 20, 2021

    I was always under the impression in volatile situations such as this was all communications are through ‘back channels’

    The Grandstanding of gesture politics the MsM craves never achieves anything.

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