The Greatest Single Failure of Cabinet Government

Well worth listening to this bit on Radio 4's PM programmme tonight about the Iraq War Cabinet minutes. It is about 6 minutes into the article.

Asked about the decision by the cabinet to go to war in Iraq, Professor Peter Hennessy Attlee Professor of Contemporary British History at Queen Mary, University of London, first describes the Cabinet as

"Supine"

and then he goes onto say the decision to go to war was

"The Greatest Single Failure of Cabinet Government at least since the Suez Crisis"

He goes onto say he can't imagine what they were Cabinet Ministers for because if on something as profound as peace and war you don't speak up, insist on Proper discussion, Proper briefing, Proper sharing of the data including the legal opinion

"What is the point of getting out of bed in the morning and pretending you are a Cabinet Minister"

I just couldn't have put it any better.

BBC - Radio 4 - Listen Again page