The Darroch Affair 1152


I am amused when I hear the resignation of Kim Darroch mooted as an attack on an apolitical civil service. Darroch’s rise to the top of the FCO was in fact a startling example of the politicisation of the civil service – there is no doubt that his enthusiastic support for the Iraq War, and for every neo-con war of aggression since, is what endeared him so strongly to the people who make the decisions on the top posts (and do not believe the fiction that ministers have no influence on them).


Kim Darroch and Tony Blair

I have annoyed quite a few people – including regular readers – for refusing to endorse any of the more baroque conspiracy theories involving Trump and Johnson conspiring to get rid of Darroch. These have the attraction of simplicity, with the evil Johnson and Trump on one side and the angelic Darroch on the other.

But many things do not easily make sense. The notion it is a plot to make Farage Ambassador to Washington is bizarre. If Johnson wishes to appoint Farage as Ambassador to Washington, after the summer break he could do it on Darroch’s retirement – which could have been if desired quietly brought forward two months with no fuss.

More to the point, the Brexit Party like UKIP is nothing without Farage. The idea that, at this crucial point, he would voluntarily lose his political leverage by going off to be a diplomat in Washington is a nonsense. And – crucially for Farage – there is just as much cash in being an MEP.

We do not know who leaked the telegrams and why. One overlooked possibility is the intention was to damage Trump himself, by releasing Darroch’s criticisms of him. As I pointed out, Darroch is an abrasive character with many disaffected people who have worked for him around, and I still think that is a likely source for the leak.

We just don’t know. But what I do know is that the idea that Darroch is an apolitical civil servant is a nonsense. I would remind you also that my objections to torture and extraordinary rendition were entirely in internal highly classified communications at the time the FCO first decided to try to move to sack me. I only leaked afterwards. So the idea that the FCO encourages honest and candid reporting is still more of the hypocritical nonsense being talked around Darroch’s resignation.


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1,152 thoughts on “The Darroch Affair

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  • Republicofscotland

    Well he’s back as Johnson’s chief of staff Dominic Cummings the man who dreamt up the big red bus with the £350 million on its side lie.

    Cummings who was found in contempt of parliament, but then refused point blank to appear before MP’s to face the music, also coined the phrase “Vote leave, Take Control.”

  • nevermind

    My MP, Richard Bacon is a cockahappy chappie today as his wish/vote to remove all EU citizens from the disunited Union, thanks to his wretched party and the yellow Tory’s, is now in sight.
    This right wing takeover will do more than take out Bercow. They will try and blame Brexit for not being able to talk policy or deal with public services and carry on ignoring the publics concerns, choose strife and false bravado to make out that they still can project military power and lavish tax cuts on its supporting status quo merchants.
    Maybe extinction is their preferred option…

    The cowards will now consolodate with the help of the bibice and msm, the state propaganda media cowtowing for their next franchise and or support.
    Theey will keep up the false racist hate campaign against Labour and carry on licking right wing orangy butt abroad.
    Iran beware! World beware.

  • Vivian O'Blivion

    WTF is Alister Jack, the new Secretary of State for Scotland? I follow Scottish politics and I’ve literally never heard of him.
    Educated as a boarder at Glenalmond College (mega fees). Deputy Lieutenant for Dumfries. Royal Company of Archers.
    Johnson has gone for the posh boy and Ruth is pure fizzin’.
    Pay attention close to home. All is not well in the court of Mad Queen Ruth. She appears to believe in her own personality cult (the MSM and particularly the BBC ain’t about to burst that bubble any time soon). Alister (odd spelling) Jack is no fan of Holyrood and he has the PM’s ear. I predict fireworks. Johnson’s family of nations, his “awesome foursome” will become the gruesome twosome under his watch.

    • Sharp Ears

      So Fluffy got the chop!

      Mr Jack is doing nicely. Keen on the fishing and lots of dosh rolling in from rich donors. I particularly was taken by the name of one of them – Mr Chippendale S Keswick. Presumably a member of one of the Scottish landowning families, the Keswicks.
      https://www.theyworkforyou.com/regmem/?p=25674

      Yes. The Keswicks, the accumulators of wealth worldwide especially via Jardine Matheson. HSBC, Hambros and on and on.

      Sir Henry Keswick & family
      13 May 2019 – Net worth: £6.356bn. Up a staggering £1.5bn from last year, Sir Henry Keswick last year retired from the board of Jardine Matheson, a conglomorate whose companies include the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, with 28 properties in cities including Bangkok, Hong Kong, New York … https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/galleries/richest-people-in-travel/sir-henry-keswick-and-family/
      22nd on the Rich List

      See 4th Generation – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keswick_family

      Mr Jack chooses his contacts well. He won’t have so much time for fishing now. LOL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alister_Jack

      • Vivian O'Blivion

        In his exceedingly short time at Westmonster, Alister has risen up the ranks of the Whips Office like a rat up a drainpipe. Apparently dishing out invitations to Ministers to visit the family estate played an instrumental role. The “Officer class” does so recognise its own.

  • Sharp Ears

    Not good news for Cherie. Amongst her other interests (eg cement production in Nigeria) she was a board member of Renault which is part of the Nissan group. It is more than likely that she holds shares in the group.
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/transport/11471687/Cherie-Blair-to-join-board-of-car-maker-Renault.html

    Nissan has just announced that they are shedding 12,000 employees worldwide.
    https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/jul/25/nissan-plans-to-axe-12500-jobs-worldwide-carmaker-reveals

    There is a Nissan factory in the UK at Sunderland where 8,000 are employed.

    The previous chairman Carlos Ghosn was taken off the board. He had been arrested in Japan on financial misconduct charges. He is now suing the group. There’s the face of greed.
    https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/industry/carlos-ghosn-sues-nissan-mitsubishi-millions-damages

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