The Exchange

There are rumours in the air. Tony Blair might be the candidate for the new position as EU president if the ratification process of the Lisbon Treaty is to have a happy ending.

The powers and the responsibilities of the EU President are still to be specified, but yesterday Glenys Kinnock announced that: “The UK government is supporting Tony Blair’s candidature for president of the council”.

This is not the place to discuss Mr. Blair political achievements and results. Time and a proper space for consideration will tell.

There is only one issue that a human rights journal must raise: if the European Union is founded on the principles of “liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and rule of law” (art. 6 of Treaty on European Union), Mr. Blair is unfit for the job. The European Union needs a President that can speak truth to power: the current vogue of Eurosceptiscim will not be otherwise overcome.

Besides the role that Blair’s New Labour played in the escalation of the U.K. surveillance society, we must also remember what Prof. Philippe Sands has widely shown in his publications: Mr. Blair has been a liar and skewed information on the Iraqi war.

Public confidence in the European institution is not going to be restored by appointing a former prime minister who has been able to lie on such an important issue.
Denis McShane is plainly wrong: Tony Blair is not a good choice.

This won’t be a happy ending - it will be a tragedy.