Robin Cook

A bit of shock, the death of Robin Cook. A man who has since been described, by people who should really know better, as "the intellectual conscience of the Labour Party". And such-like guff. OK, so it all gets wheeled out for the dead, and yes he did quit his cabinet post over the Gulf War (although how much of that was an attempt to position himself as the most likely rallying point for any "left opposition" should Blair get it in the neck is debatable). But let's talk about a far more pertinent political input, which probably says more about his character. Way back in the mists of time, when the UK was still governed by the Conservative Party (that's the other Conservative Party...), Cook proudly boasted of Labour's "Ethical Foreign Policy" commitments. No more arms sales to repressive regimes. No more turning a blind eye to torture and human rights abuses committed by "our allies". Marvellous. Something we could all support. Skip forward to Robin Cook, first Foreign Secretary of the New Labour Regime. First test of the Ethical Foreign Policy - should we allow Scorpion tanks to be sold to President Suharto's murderous Indonesian government? Hmmm, let's think about that one, shall we? Obviously, that nice General Suharto wouldn't do anything bad with them - OK, he may have been responsible for genocide in East Timor, but that was the bad old days. In the end, Cook cowardly allowed the tanks to be shipped, claiming the government could be sued if he didn't. Erm, who by? Alvis, the tank's manufacturers? Here's an interesting thought. We all agree that some form of defence is necessary. Sad, but true. But why does the manufacture of the requisite weaponry have to be in private hands? No one in their right mind is thinking of privatising the army, so why should arms manufacturers be out to make a profit? Nationalise them, use them purely for national defence purposes, and this sort of thing can be avoided. And whilst we're at it, nationalising the leading drugs companies would prevent them from screwing the NHS, and allow further government medical research spending to be more efficiently planned and used, rather than huge swathes of profit going into the back pockets of shareholders.
Anyway, I digress. Robin Cook - not quite the saint he was made out. On the other hand, it seems Mr Tony has snubbed his funeral, so he must have done something right...