'He was personally responsible for causing the death of countless innocent, civilian lives and servicement in various conflicts. In an explanation of his petition, Mr Scott wrote: 'Tony Blair caused irreparable damage to both the constitution of the United Kingdom and to the very fabric of the nation's society. The 2016 Iraq inquiry found Sir Tony presented the case for war with 'a certainty which was not justified' based on 'flawed' intelligence on Iraq's supposed weapons of mass destruction'. But the former Labour premier had to wait over 14 years before being made a knight companion. Sir John Major was awarded the honour in 2005, eight years after he left No 10. They are separate from the New Year and Queen's Birthday Honours, which are managed by the Cabinet Office. My congratulations to Tony Blair on this recognition for his public service.'Īppointments to the Order of the Garter, the oldest order of chivalry, are in the Queen's gift. Norman Baker, an ex-minister and critic of the honours system, said: 'Awards should be given on merit and based on public opinion.'īut Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: 'The last Labour government delivered enduring change from the national minimum wage to the peace process in Northern Ireland. On Monday evening, former UKIP leader Nigel Farage told MailOnline that the row over Sir Tony's knighthood added 'more pressure' on the beleaguered Boris Johnson, who has faced intense criticism in recent weeks over the Downing Street party scandal and the rebellion by Tory MPs against coronavirus Plan B measures. One group, Veterans and Supporters UK, told followers to sign after sharing an article saying: 'Traitorous Tony Blair really is untouchable'. Veterans' groups online urged former soldiers to sign the petition, sharing mocked-up photos of Sir Tony with the words 'killer' or 'traitor' on his forehead. The system needs to change so that decisions like this can be questioned.' 'He was handing out letters of comfort to IRA terrorists on an industrial scale while deliberately excluding any protection to our soldiers. Paul Young, 71, who toured Northern Ireland with the Household Cavalry between 19, said: 'This is a huge insult to our community – Tony Blair is despised by us following the Good Friday Agreement. He added: We've known for a while that there's a problem with the system, now it's clear it needs a total overhaul.' If you speak to the average man in the street and ask them if they want Tony Blair to be a knight of the realm they will say no way. It shows that the honours system is broken from top to bottom. 'I am enraged that a man could be knighted for conning his country into war. 'Soldiers will be turning in their graves over this,' said the 69-year-old from Llanbedr in North Wales. Reg Keys, whose 20-year-old son Lance Corporal Tom Keys was killed in Iraq in 2003, led calls to review the knighthood. Similar petitions on Parliament's official website have been denied for the same reason. However it will not be debated by MPs because honours are a matter for the Queen and not ministers. The three-day-old petition on has grown at a near record rate to 534,000 signatures. Soldiers are outraged that the former prime minister received the top gong after leading the UK into Iraq and signing a deal pardoning IRA terrorists while British soldiers faced charges.įamilies of those killed in the war against Saddam Hussein branded Sir Tony, 68, a 'war criminal' and a 'liar' and called for politicians to overturn the decision. Furious veterans last night called for the honours system to be overhauled as a petition demanding Tony Blair be stripped of his knighthood hit half a million.
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