Alan West

A safe pair of hands?

Have just read that the newly created Labour peer Lord Alan West was court martialled a few years back for losing highly classified documents on a Berkshire canal towpath. Since he is a Junior Minister responsible for security issues --Well.
Not sure if it's true however. Do you have accurate details?

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

I seem to remember that he was a Captain at the time, working in MOD. He got off very lightly, raising (my) suspicions that he was encouraged to "lose" them on purpose as a way of leaking information to the media. Perhaps I'm just too cynical!

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Thanks for that. Interesting cynicism!!

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

No way, it's just a coincidence that he happened to be carrying those docs (which he happened to have taken home to work on) when he decided to take a friend's dog for a walk while waiting for a train.

Also pure chance that they were found by a journalist who happened to be walking along the same towpath shortly after they had fallen out of his pocket.

And the incident had no bearing whatsoever on his promotion following slapped wrists at court martial.

It could happen to anyone! :rofl:

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

See either the back issue of Private Eye (No. 651) OR go to your newsagents and buy the current issue (No. 1188. 6 July - 19 July. Priced £1.50) and see 'Tales of the Riverbank' on page 9. It's very informative.

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Thanks will pick one up tomorrow.

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

:toilet: Was he not the Cdr of one of the Type 21's sunk in the Falklands and came across as a top man and all for the blokes on his return, I recall that there was some kind of review going on which was going to hit the RN big style or something like that and documents 'spilling the beans' were lost by the said man. Reading between the lines he was trying to do us all a favour which would appear to be in character for him and I am not surprised he has been elevated to his current role.Top Johny. :tp:

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Slightly off thread but further to my last: Other interesting and/or amusing defence related articles can be found in this months Eye, namely: 'Called to Ordure' (p.8), 'News From The Sandpit' (p.10), 'Dumb Britain' (p.12), 'Porn to Run' (p.14) and 'Fly in the Ointment' (p.29).

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Hello Norman

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Just bought one Well! Are the court martial papers of Captain West available as a FOIA request or otherwise?
Private Eye can exaggerate a bit when it suits it, so would like to read the facts before passing judgment.

 

A Labour Admiral

Is Lord Alan West the first ever promoted Senior Naval. Army or Air Force Labour peer? I had always assumed they were all Conservatives>
So far as I am aware previously exalted Flag Officers were Conservative or perhaps Whig.
But Lord Alan West a Labour peer? It beggars belief.

What do you think?

 

Re: A Labour Admiral

I think you are Norma.

 

Re: A Labour Admiral

He's taken the Labour whip because that's what the position is, but he hasn't joined the Labour party, and has made of point of telling people that.

 

Re: A Labour Admiral

So that's all right then. I hadn't realised it was so simple.

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

merged

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Pourquoi--touche

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

Is that a MERGE? Algorithm?
or a MERGED? Ontology?
Please advise

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

As a Captain losing ones ship is come sort of honour? I'd always assumed that sinking the enemy's ship was the general idea.

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

:violent3: :violent2:

 

Re: A safe pair of hands?

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