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FB's writings on Politics
4.3. THE BLIGHT OF BLAIRISM
4.3.3. Selections from Reviews
Lord Tebbit-
'In his book THE BLIGHT OF BLAIRISM Mr Bennion has correctly
diagnosed Blair's contempt for his own country and his ambition
to refashion it as a province of a foreign land.'
Norris McWhirter-
'Legal author and former parliamentary draftsman, Francis
Bennion, has been driven to write THE BLIGHT OF BLAIRISM
in 70 brief but biting chapters. The word "Blairism"
has recently been added to the Oxford English Dictionary.
The best summing up of this new antidote to "spin" comes
from Lord Tebbit (as above).
Francis Bennion is a most unusual lawyer. It is very rare for
a lawyer to move the courts in private prosecutions, yet it was
Mr Bennion who, with considerable difficulty, succeeded in getting
Mr Blair's Cabinet Minister, Peter Hain, convicted of criminal
conspiracy at the Old Bailey.
Mr Bennion's range of epithets, as applied to our twice-elected
Prime Minister, is extensive. There are mild ones, concerning
his presidential style and overweening ambition and "clammy
populism". This is stepped up when describing megalomaniac
behaviour, treachery, hypocrisy and even acting traitorously.
It is abundantly clear that the author, who dedicates his book
to TFA Council Member Gerald Howarth MP, is desperately concerned
about "our beloved land". His final word is: "England
holds a special position for Blairites - a little below that of
every other country in the world . . . "'
- (Freedom Today, February/March 2003)
The Commonwealth Lawyer
says-
The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, who rode to power on
the crest of a massive wave of popularity in May 1997, has
seen quite a lot of that popularity disappear in recent months.
He has been the subject of many unflattering articles in the
press, and this book by Bennion, a well-known legal and political
commentator, offers a taste of that genre of journalism. The
70 articles comprising this book span a wide range of subjects,
from fox-hunting, through elections and referendums, to the
Ulster problem, but lawyers will find Bennion's offerings on
such issues as the reform of the House of Lords, the Human
Rights Act, the proposal to curb jury trials, an Inspectorate
of the Crown Prosecution Service, tax law reform, the use of
the Parliament Acts, and the International Criminal Court,
particularly interesting. The essays are full of wit and wisdom,
many of them in the hallowed tradition of British parliamentary
sketch-writing.
(August 2003)
Ann Lyon
Her review (from
http://www.baronage.co.uk/2003b/blairism.pdf) can be viewed here:
Ann
Lyon review of THE BLIGHT OF BLAIRISM
Also
see my blog FBBB63
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