Dyke To Blair: You're Incompetent Or A Liar

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Football uppermost in everybody's minds today, but can't let this one go undocumented - from today's Daily Mirror, where ex-BBC Director General Greg Dyke comes out punching...



DYKE TO BLAIR: YOU'RE INCOMPETENT OR A LIAR Aug 30 2004

By Rosa Prince, Political Correspondent

FORMER BBC chief Greg Dyke has accused Tony Blair of being "incompetent" or "a liar" over the Iraq War.

Ex-Director General Mr Dyke revealed that the Prime Minister wrote to him the day the war began accusing the BBC of bias against the Government.

Furious Mr Dyke wrote back: "I do not mean to be rude, but having faced the biggest ever public demonstration and the biggest ever backbench rebellion against a sitting Government, would you not agree that your communications advisors are not best placed to advise whether or not the BBC has got the balance right between support and defence?"

The former Labour supporter also challenges the PM over the "sexed-up" claim Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. He writes in his autobiography Inside Story: "The decision to go to war was made first and the intelligence to support that was discovered afterwards.

"The charge against Blair is damning. He was either incompetent and took Britain to war on a misunderstanding or he lied when he told the Commons he didn't know what the 45-minute claim was. We were all duped. History will not be on Blair's side.

"It will not absolve him but will show the whole saga is a great political scandal."

Mr Blair had complained to Mr Dyke about its war reporting on March 19, 2003.

The PM's letter said: "I believe, and I am not alone in believing, that you have not got the balance right between support and dissent."

Mr Dyke's says his reply so enraged Mr Blair's press chief Alastair Campbell that he declared war on the BBC.

Mr Dyke called Mr Campbell a "deranged and vindictive b*****d" and said Downing Street was like the White House during Watergate.

He writes: "You were either for them or against them. And if you opposed them you became the enemy."

 

[DJ Leon]

Yawn.... Why has this all resurfaced now? Why wait until now to renew hostilities? Oh yeah, Dyke has written a book and wants to make sure it sells well. Pathetic.

I welcome the day when we start to ignore anyone making controversial statements just before a book release.

Saying that I never took anything Dyke ever said too seriously anyway, the man's an idiot.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

When the ex-Director-General of the BBC is moved to write such a powerful condemnation of the government responsible for systematic smearing and bullying of individuals and organisations not prepared to toe the official line, then people should sit up, take notice and ask questions. I for one do not believe Dyke is making these statements simply to flog a few books.

 

[Beach Hut]

I think it is a load of bollox.

The only way to get rid of this government is to vote it out next May.

 

[Rangdo]

When the ex-Director-General of the BBC is moved to write such a powerful condemnation of the government responsible for systematic smearing and bullying of individuals and organisations not prepared to toe the official line, then people should sit up, take notice and ask questions. I for one do not believe Dyke is making these statements simply to flog a few books.

Blair thought he'd managed to sweep him under the carpet last time but this book is going to kick it all up again. Of course he wants to sell his books but it's also a good opportunity for him to sell his case to those who accepted Blair's attempts to silence him before.

 

[London Irish]

Dyke is minted. The idea that he is saying this to rake in a bit more cash is idiotic. It is a genuine cry of anger from someone who has supported Labour for years and expected party leaders to behave with some decency and decorum. Instead he got the thug Campbell and the sanctamonious lying prig Blair trying to destroy his reputation and that of the BBC.

I'm delighted to say I've renewed my membership of the Labour Party because I know the one thing that the Blair fan club hate is socialists sticking around reminding them that they are utter cants. Anything they hate, I do.

 

[Beach Hut]

Dyke should have known better.

Trusted a bunch of back stabbers - very naiive IMHO

 

[DJ Leon]

When the ex-Director-General of the BBC is moved to write such a powerful condemnation of the government responsible for systematic smearing and bullying of individuals and organisations not prepared to toe the official line, then people should sit up, take notice and ask questions. I for one do not believe Dyke is making these statements simply to flog a few books.

I have no doubt he believes what he is saying and, of course, he has a point. But you are naive if you don't think he made this particular outburst to sell his book.

It's a bit like Robin Cook. He resigned from the government over Iraq and he made as powerful and as dignified a parliamentary speech as I have ever heard. He then wrote a book making £750,000 on the serialisation alone. He must have made at least £2m overall. Now I don't doubt he resigned on principle alone, and that his subsequent actions were made for all the right reasons. But doesn't it make you just a tad uneasy? This self-interested commercialism from people in powerful positions should be checked. As someone, like me, clearly on the left, surely you must agree? If Dyke wanted to declare war on Blair then there are better ways to do it than release a £14.99 hardback.

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

Saying that I never took anything Dyke ever said too seriously anyway, the man's an idiot.

No he's not, he's the best director-general the BBC's had since Reith (I'm not exaggerating)

Ask the 5,000 plus BBC staff who paid, out of their own money, to take out a full page ad in the Telegraph supporting him after he quit.

How many other bosses would garner that much respect?

 

[DJ Leon]

No he's not, he's the best director-general the BBC's had since Reith (I'm not exaggerating)

Ask the 5,000 plus BBC staff who paid, out of their own money, to take out a full page ad in the Telegraph supporting him after he quit.

How many other bosses would garner that much respect?

The job of the BBC DG is not to be popular and we can't judge him on solely being so.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The job of the BBC DG is not to be popular and we can't judge him on solely being so.

No, but you can judge him on standing up for the BBC's independence against extremely fierce government pressure to toe the line.

 

[Brovion]

No, but you can judge him on standing up for the BBC's independence against extremely fierce government pressure to toe the line.

True. Every single Government thinks the BBC is biased against it - which says a lot for the BBC's impartiality. All have tried to control it by putting their own placemen into it (Marmaduke Hussey anyone?) but none took it to the extremes that Blair and Campbell did. All the BBC was guilty of was a bit of sloppy journalism, I can't imagine a Tory PM being quite so vindictive. You can draw an inference there between the tolerance levels of Thatcher/Major and Blair but I'm not sure I want to.