Downing Street Says » Charles Clarke

Put to the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) that Charles Clarke’s letter to the Select Committee made clear that he knew nothing about the foreign prisoners being deported in March 2005, and had the Prime Minister also known nothing about the foreign prisoners being deported, the PMOS said that we had gone over this at the time, and the PMOS had nothing to add, as he was not getting into processology. We had set out the sequence of when people had known what, and there was nothing further to say.

Put that why it mattered was implicit in Mr. Clarke’s letter was that the senior civil servants, including the Permanent Secretary, failed to report to the Secretary of State about a major policy problem, and that had implications for future policy, rather than processology in the past, and had Ministers or the Prime Minister known about the arrangement, the PMOS said that he was still keeping to what he had said. The important thing was that these matters were now being reviewed in detail, and it would be that which would determine future policy.

Asked why the Prime Minister had "got rid" of Charles Clarke, the PMOS said that the reasons were set out at the time. What was said at the time was that Mr. Clarke was offered another Cabinet post, but he chose not to take it. That was Charles Clarke’s decision. The Prime Minister had paid tribute to Mr. Clarke’s work at the Home Office, particularly during the very difficult days surrounding 7/7.

Put that Charles Clarke had made it clear in his letter that he had done nothing wrong, and given that the Prime Minister had agreed with that, it was curious that he had got rid of Mr. Clarke, the PMOS replied that the reasons for the change were set out at the time.

Asked if Charles Clarke had discussed with the Prime Minister what he intended to say on Newsnight tonight, the PMOS said that Charles Clarke was his own man, and he was now a backbench MP. He was therefore free to say what he wished to say, as any other ex-Minister was free to do.

Asked if that was a "no" then, the PMOS said it was an explanation of Charles Clarke’s position.

Asked what was the position that was set out earlier this year; did the Prime Minister know before March about the foreign prisoners, the PMOS said that the journalist could google the answer as well as he could.

Asked if the PMOS knew, the PMOS said he did, and he did remember, but he had no intention of going back over a history lesson. Lobbies were about today, not yesterday.

2 Comments »

As I argue <a href="http://langfield.blogspot.com/2006/06/why-now-charles.html">here</a>, Clarke has made these comments now, in the midst of the World Cup, in order to minimise the damage done to Tony Blair.
Comment by SPL — 27 Jun 2006 on 1:21 pm | Link
As I argue <a href="http://langfield.blogspot.com/2006/06/why-now-charles.html">here</a>, Clarke has made these comments now, in the midst of the World Cup, in order to minimise the damage done to Tony Blair.
Comment by SPL — 27 Jun 2006 on 1:22 pm | Link

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» Monday, June 26, 2006

Charles Clarke

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