By Ben Kerrigan-
Over half a million people have called on the government to rescind the knighthood given to Sir Tony Blair, but Keir Starmer has defended the former prime minister, saying the honour was deserved.
The appointment was the personal choice of the Queen, who has up to 24 “knight and lady companions”, with current Prime Minister Boris Johnson not involved in the decision.
The petition posted on the change.org website by Angus Scott says Sir Tony “caused irreparable damage to both the constitution of the United Kingdom and to the very fabric of the nation’s society” while in office. It says ”He was personally responsible for causing the death of countless innocent, civilian lives and servicemen in various conflicts. For this alone he should be held accountable for war crimes,” it adds.
“Tony Blair is the least deserving person of any public honour, particularly anything awarded by Her Majesty the Queen.”
Blair infamously endorsed the war in Iraq, falsely claiming that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destructions, only for this to turn out to be false.
He was personally responsible for causing the death of countless innocent, civilian lives and servicemen in various conflicts. For this alone he should be held accountable for war crimes,” it adds.
“Tony Blair is the least deserving person of any public honour, particularly anything awarded by Her Majesty the Queen.”
Asked on Good Morning Britan whether Blair was deserving of the honour, labour leader, Keir Starmer said:
“I don’t think it’s thorny at all. I think he deserves the honour. Obviously I respect the fact that people have different views,” Starmer told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
“I understand there are strong views on the Iraq war. There were back at the time and there still are, but that does not detract from the fact that Tony Blair was a very successful prime minister of this country and made a huge difference to the lives of millions of people in this country.”
Blair, who led Labour to three election victories, was prime minister during the allied military invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.
The petition on Change.org was created by Angus Scott, who wrote: “Tony Blair caused irreparable damage to both the constitution of the United Kingdom and to the very fabric of the nation’s society. He was personally responsible for causing the death of countless innocent, civilian lives and servicemen in various conflicts. For this alone he should be held accountable for war crimes.”
The viral petition was not created on the parliamentary website, where petitions have legal standing. Petitions that are signed there by 10,000 people must receive a response from the government, and those signed by more than 100,000 people are considered for debate in parliament.
Past prime ministers have been recipients of the honour with Sir John Major – Blair’s predecessor – the last to receive the honour. Appointments to the Garter are in the Queen’s gift and made without prime ministerial advice.
The Commons Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, has also defended the honour’s award. “Whatever people might think, it is one of the toughest jobs in the world,” he said, “and I think it is respectful and it is the right thing to do … They should all be offered that knighthood when they finish as prime minister.”