The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Tag: Gulf War

  • PMQT Written Answers – 25 February 1991

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 25th February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Norwegian Prime Minister

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what was discussed at his meeting with his Norwegian counterpart on 13 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 21 February at column 223.

     

    Street Lighting

    Dr. Twinn : To ask the Prime Minister if he will seek to improve co- ordination between the Home Office and Departments of Environment and Transport to identify where early action can be taken to reduce the public’s fear of, and to help prevent, crime by improving the standard of street lighting in towns; and if he will make a statement.

    The Prime Minister : The Home Office has just received a first draft of a report of a major research study undertaken by the University of Southampton to assess the impact of improved street lighting on crime and the fear of crime in the London borough of Wandsworth. The results are being considered. The Home Office is also engaged in a monitoring exercise on the link between lighting improvements and crime in four urban areas. When all the relevant information is to hand Home Office Ministers will consider, in conjunction with other Departments as appropriate, what further action is necessary to try and reduce the public’s fear of crime.

     

    German Chancellor

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what matters were discussed during his meeting with Chancellor Kohl in Bonn on 11 February.

    The Prime Minister : Chancellor Kohl and I discussed a number of current issues, including the Gulf, relations with the Soviet Union and European Community affairs. I look forward to developing our close relationship.

     

    Nuclear Accidents

    Dr. David Clark : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on his progress in preparing a contingency plan to deal with the effects of any future nuclear accident overseas following the parliamentary answer to the hon. Member for Bedfordshire, North (Sir T. Skeet) on 30 June 1987, Official Report, columns 65-67.

    The Prime Minister : My right hon. Friend the Member for Cirencester and Tewkesbury (Mr. Ridley), the then Secretary of State for the Environment, announced in January 1988 that proposals for implementing the national response plan had been finalised. Details of the proposals have been published in a booklet : “The National Response Plan and Radiation Incident Monitoring Network (RIMNET). A Statement of Proposals” published by HMSO, copies of which have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

    The radiation monitors for the first phase of the RIMNET system have been in operation since June 1988, and I understand that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment will be making an announcement shortly with regard to the award of the contract for installing phase 2 of RIMNET.

     

    Electricity Prices

    Mr. Dobson : To ask the Prime Minister whether his office has been consulted about the proposed 13 per cent. increase in domestic electricity prices.

    The Prime Minister : It is for the Director General of Electricity Supply to receive and consider the companies’ proposals, and to satisfy himself that they are consistent with the companies’ licence requirements.

     

    The Gulf

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what communications he, or his officials, had with the deputy director-general of the BBC on 13 February concerning BBC news coverage of the casualties caused to Iraqi civilians by allied air raids on Baghdad.

    The Prime Minister : There is contact on a regular basis between my office and the media on a variety of subjects, including the coverage of the Gulf conflict.

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister if President Bush contacted Her Majesty’s Government prior to his speech in Massachusetts on 15 February calling for the overthrow of President Saddam Hussein; and what is the Government’s policy in relation to the President of Iraq.

    The Prime Minister : The Government’s policy towards Iraq is to secure full, immediate and unconditional compliance with the Security Council resolutions.

    Mr. Latham : To ask the Prime Minister whether he will make a statement on the progress of military action to liberate Kuwait in accordance with resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.

    The Prime Minister : The military action to free Kuwait is making steady progress, while attempting to avoid civilian casualties so far as possible. The forces of the multinational coalition deserve great credit for their performance.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Statement – 24 February 1991

    Below is Mr Major’s doorstep statement given in London on Sunday 24th February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER:
    The Chief of the Defence Staff has just been briefing me on operational matters so far and I have also had the opportunity of talking to President Bush so we can concert the advice that we both had. The Chief of the Defence Staff has also been in close consultation with General Powell throughout the day.

    Thus far things seem to be going very well indeed, we are pleased with what has happened so far. The plans do seem to be ahead of schedule and as you will have heard earlier there are a very substantial number of Iraqi prisoners that have been taken. I must say at this stage though that this is a very early stage of the campaign, it may well be tougher in days to come though the beginning has been as satisfactory as we could have hoped.

    We are still getting continuing reports of atrocities in Kuwait City, the damage, damage to buildings, blowing up the Parliamentary building and the other atrocities that I mentioned earlier today, they are continuing and I think that does illustrate very clearly that we were right to take this action now and not to delay any longer. I am afraid there is no further information that I can give you at the moment but I am happy to take one or two questions on non-operational matters if that would be helpful.

    QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, do you feel that the accounts coming out from some allied centres are in danger of being euphoric or are you yourself just saying cautious?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No, I think it is right to be cautious, this is a very early stage of the campaign, we must wait and see what happens over a longer period. There may be more difficult days ahead than those we have had thus far.

    QUESTION:

    General Schwarzkopf has said that casualties had been very light, what do we know about the British forces and what happened to them?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No I can give you no operational information of that sort but I can certainly confirm what General Schwarzkopf has said, the casualties have been very light so far.

    QUESTION:

    He also did mention British involvement. I know you cannot go into detail but can you just say a word or two about the extent of British involvement so far?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    British involvement is growing and I think that will become apparent over the days ahead but I am afraid I can give you no more information than that.

    QUESTION:

    Dick Cheney has said he thinks it is going to be a relatively short war, is that your reading of the situation?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think it will be relatively short, I think that is true, I do not think it is possible at this stage to put a time limit to it, that depends on a large number of matters that at the moment are simply not knowable. It has begun well, there is some way to go, but I do not think it will go on for a terribly long time.

    QUESTION:

    And the casualties, however light, what is your message to the families who are waiting at home and do not know any more than we do?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Everyone can understand the agony of the people who are waiting at home and I am sorry one cannot give them more precise information. As soon as any information is available we will of course communicate it but it must of course be first to them I think.

    QUESTION:

    Can you give us a flavour of what you were able to say to President Bush or what he was able to say to you?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We simply compared notes on how it had gone so far and how we expected it to develop from now on and I think that is all I can say about that.

  • Mr Major’s Statement from Chequers – 24 February 1991

    Below is Mr Major’s statement from Chequers on Sunday 24th February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think as you all know the land battle started at an early time this morning. It is a massive encounter and it will not cease until the Iraqis have been completely driven out of Kuwait. I very much appreciate the diplomatic efforts that have been put in hand over the last few days to try and avoid this particular conflict. But they have failed and they have failed because at no time was the Iraqi leadership prepared to accept the Security Council resolutions in full, at no time were they prepared to do so.

    We have also seen in the last few days that there was neither time nor reason to delay the land battle any longer, no reason because the Security Council resolutions were not going to be met, and no time because of what is now happening in Kuwait city. There are now something over 200 oil wells that have been wantonly set alight on the direct instructions of the Iraqi leadership. That number is rising hour by hour. The Iraqis are engaged upon the systematic destruction of Kuwait city. We have repeated reports of young men and women being rounded up and executed in Kuwait city, murdered perhaps would be a more apt word for what is going on there. And we also have reports of large numbers of Kuwaitis being herded together on trucks and taken out of Kuwait to Iraq, presumably to be used as a bargaining counter in some discussions at the end of the conflict.

    I think it is clear therefore that the nature of the regime with which we are dealing is not a regime whose words you can rely upon or with whom you can deal in the normal manner. The land campaign has therefore begun.

    I spoke at length yesterday afternoon not only to the leaders of a number of members of the allied coalition but also to the Commander of our forces in the Middle East, General de la Billiere. He was confident of what was to come, he was well prepared and assures me that the troops were well prepared. He is also well aware of the risks and the dangers that will need to be overcome in the next few days.

    I know you will not expect me to give you any indication at this early stage of how the conflict is going. I cannot do so, it would not be in the interests of our troops to do so and they of course must be our prime concern. As soon as it is possible to say something more concrete about that then of course we will do so.

    If I may, I would like to add one final word to the families of those men who are engaged in this conflict in the Gulf. It will not, I believe, be a long conflict but it may be a fierce one. There is no doubt in my mind that it is an absolutely justifiable conflict and that we will win it. As soon as that is confirmed we will bring home the men who have been engaged in it at the earliest possible time.

    QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

    QUESTION:

    [Inaudible]

    PRIME MINISTER:

    [Indistinct] time and time again, we have had quite differing signals from the Iraqis, we simply cannot rely on what they have said. The whole world will have noticed in the last few days the quite distinct voices that came out of Moscow with the negotiations that Tariq Aziz was carrying out there and the speeches that Saddam Hussein was making in Baghdad, they were wholly different. As for the future, that will have to take care of itself.

    QUESTION:

    What were your personal feelings this morning?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am very sorry that it has come to this. A tremendous amount of effort has gone in over many months by a large number of people to ensure that we did not come to this particular conflict so I am saddened that it has done so. But I must say I am absolutely convinced that there is no choice and that it is right. If the Iraqis were to succeed, if they were to get away with what they have sought to do over the last few months, then I think that would be intolerable not just for Kuwait but for the rest of the world. So I think there is an inevitability about what is happening at the moment and I am absolutely clear in my mind that it will end successfully.

    QUESTION:

    Saddam Hussein has been defiant yet again in his tone, what do you think of his tone that he seems to be continuing with again this morning?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Arrogant, unrealistic, and it must soon dawn even on him that he is going to lose and lose big.

    QUESTION:

    Now that the land war has started, how should Saddam Hussein end it, is it going to be difficult for him merely to make a statement that he intends to withdraw now that the forces are engaged? What signal does he have to give that will allow this war to end?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    There is no sign of him giving any signal at all that it proposes to end, even this morning he has been making wholly unrealistic and wholly defiant and wholly untruthful speeches. So there is no sign from him whatsoever that it is going to end so I am in no position to forecast that. I know what the end will be, the end will be that he will lose, but how that will come about I am afraid it is impossible for me to judge at the moment.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Comments at Warrenpoint – 22 February 1991

    Below are extracts from Mr Major’s doorstep answers to the media at Warrenpoint on 22nd February 1991, at around 12.30pm.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    “We have been in touch with our allies this morning. We have discussed what the Iraqis have had to say. I have spoken to the President. We have co-ordinated our response to what they have had to say and on behalf of the allies the President will make that public at some stage later this afternoon.”

    [Prime Minister confirmed he had just spoken to President Bush, but couldn’t provide further details]

    “We were discussing what the response should be to the apparent offer that may have been made and that will become apparent later on this afternoon and President Bush will announce it.”

    [Prime Minister asked if British people were prepared for horrors of war]

    “I think the whole world knows that we have done everything we possibly could, by we I mean the allies collectively, firstly to persuade him to withdraw peaceably very shortly after he first invaded in August; there have been repeated options for him to withdraw over the past 5 or 6 months; nothing that could have been done has not been done, that could have persuaded him to withdraw and end this matter peaceably.

    “The responsibility for the conflict is in Iraq and there is absolutely no doubt whatever about that. I believe people are well aware of what has happened in Iraq. They are well aware of the principles which are at stake, although nobody wants a large land conflict, if it is avoidable. They understand very well that it may be necessary if he doesn’t obey the Security Council Resolutions.”

    “It is not a question of conscience on the issue. Everyone has tried to avoid a conflict. Saddam Hussein could have avoided conflict. He could have obeyed the Security Council Resolutions and withdrawn. He still has that option.”

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview (III) – 22 February 1991

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s third doorstep interview on Friday 22nd February 1991, held in London outside 10 Downing Street.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think you will all be very well versed on the various peace initiatives that have been made in the last few days. I am grateful for the fact that they were made but I think it is clear, in view of what has happened, that the Iraqis have been more concerned with seeking to evade the context of the Security Council Resolutions than to meet those particular Resolutions.

    In the light of that, the Coalition partners decided today that they would issue a statement to set out precisely what was required in order to stop that conflict. The statement that has been made has been agreed with all the Coalition partners; it has been the subject of very substantial discussion; it is perfectly clear; and it is not negotiable.

    So Iraq now know precisely what they have to do. I hope they recognise that we are not prepared to bargain with them and we are certainly not prepared to be strung along by them. What is necessary is perfectly clear; they have known what the Security Council Resolutions are since November of last year – the time has now come for them to implement them. If they fail to implement them, then they will know what the consequences are and I think everyone will know precisely where the blame will lie for any events that follow subsequently.

    I think, therefore, that I have nothing more to say about that but I am happy to take any questions you may have.

    QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS :

    QUESTION (JOHN SERGEANT – BBC TV):

    Prime Minister, what happens if Saddam Hussein decides unilaterally that the Iraqis will withdraw from Kuwait?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    He now knows what is necessary. What is necessary is to implement the Security Council Resolutions in full and to state authoritatively and publicly that he is proposing to do that. That is what we require of him.

    We are really not prepared to be strung along any longer; it is not in the interests of Kuwait; it is not in the interests of our armed forces; and it is not in the interests of the whole territory – I hope he recognises that.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, what hopes do you have?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We have seen on a number of occasions in the past that hopes have been raised and then dashed so I am not going to express whatever hopes I have. I think it is necessary to set out the position clearly and that we have done. There is now no doubt whatsoever about the position the Allies hold.

    MICHAEL BRUNSON (ITN):

    [Indistinct] you are not, as such, going to offer Saddam Hussein a cease-fire, that is not part of the agreement? Can you explain why not?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The position is perfectly clear, Michael. We have set out what he needs to do. If he does that, then the possibility of a cease-fire is there and we would have a cease-fire but we are not in a position of bargaining with him. He knows what needs to be done; he has known it for a long time; it is time for him to stop fooling about and do it.

    MICHAEL BRUNSON (ITN):

    And the moment he begins to withdraw, then we would consider holding our fire?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We need an authoritative statement of what he is prepared to do – one that is unmistakable – and it needs to be followed by clear-cut action.

    QUESTION:

    Can he withdraw with his military armour with him or must he leave some of that armour behind in Kuwait?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    He has a time-frame to get out; we will have to wait and see how that works out.

    QUESTION:

    Do you think that the agreement today is something which could be built on?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    There isn’t an agreement today! What has happened today is that we have set out – so that there may be no doubt about it – what terms we require of the Iraqis. That is the position; it is not negotiable; it is not an agreement. The Security Council Resolutions set out what was necessary a long time ago; they are not something that Saddam Hussein should play games with – he should obey them!

    QUESTION:

    Is the bombing to go on then, Mr. Major?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The conflict continues until such time as Saddam Hussein stops it by announcing that he will meet the Security Council Resolutions and begin to withdraw.

    QUESTION:

    It has been suggested, Prime Minister, that napalm might be being used on the Allied side. Is that right?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No. I have heard no such suggestion.

    JOHN COLE (BBC TV)

    Prime Minister, is 5 p.m. tomorrow, London time, when the land war can begin?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    It is analogous to the 15 January deadline that we had on an earlier occasion.

    JOHN COLE (BBC TV)

    You don’t say that it will begin at that time?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No, I don’t say that it will begin at that time.

    QUESTION:

    Is the war on or off in your opinion now?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    That is a matter for Saddam Hussein to decide – I wish I knew the answer! We very much want it to be off. We have tried repeatedly to make sure it was off. I don’t think we could, frankly, have done any more to ensure that this conflict ended. We have done all we can during the conflict to minimise casualties – that has been the consistent position of the Allies throughout the whole of this affair and it remains it – but the situation now is clearly in Saddam Hussein’s hands; he can stop the war and he cannot any longer claim to be in the slightest doubt about what he needs to do to stop it.

    QUESTION:

    So it is on?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    That is for him to determine, isn’t it?

    QUESTION:

    What precisely will you want to see at 5 o’clock tomorrow to be sure that the Iraqis are withdrawing?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We want a clear and authoritative statement that he is prepared to withdraw, that he is prepared to meet the Security Council Resolutions and that he begins to do so.

    QUESTION:

    Does he, Prime Minister, actually have to start withdrawing or merely say that he will?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We need the authoritative statement and then he will need to begin to withdraw very speedily.

    QUESTION:

    What is your reaction to the scorched action by the Iraqis?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    They have been damaging oil wells for some time. It does seem to have been accelerated by a very substantial extent over the last 48 hours or so. Precisely what the purpose is, one can only conjecture but clearly it is happening; it is undesirable and it is not something we would wish to see continue.

    MICHAEL BRUNSON (ITN):

    But clearly he has to stop doing that as well as the real danger is that if you give him any leeway at all he would continue to try and destroy those?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think that is self-evidently so.

    QUESTION:

    There is no lessening of any military activity between now and the deadline?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    None whatsoever. The military activity will continue until such time as a statement is made that he will obey the Security Council Resolutions and he then does begin to do so.

    Thank you all very much indeed!

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview (II) – 22 February 1991

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s second doorstep interview on Friday 22nd February 1991, held in London outside 10 Downing Street.

    QUESTION:

    Can you tell us about your response to the peace proposals?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We have had an opportunity of looking at it in some depth; we had a look at it overnight. We had some discussions this morning with the United States and with others. I had the opportunity of speaking at length to the President on the phone earlier this morning, and on behalf of the Allies he will make our response clear fairly shortly I think.

    QUESTION:

    Is it broadly a rejection or is it broadly an acceptance?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    It will be broadly clear in a few moments and the President will make it clear on behalf of all of us.

    QUESTION:

    Will there be other diplomatic steps being taken this afternoon?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    The first thing that is going to happen is that we will make clear our response to the 8-point plan that was announced last evening. We will make our response absolutely crystal clear and I think other things will follow automatically from that. I don’t think you will have to wait very long for it.

    QUESTION:

    Will the response be the response of all the allied countries?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Yes, all the allied countries. There has been a considerable degree of consultation since last evening and it will be a response on behalf of all the allies. The precise timing is not too far away.

    QUESTION:

    And are you anticipating further negotiations?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think you had better wait for the statement and I think then all will become clear.

    QUESTION:

    Would you be able to give us more details in person later, Prime Minister?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think it is quite possible I will.

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview (I) – 22 February 1991

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s first doorstep interview on Friday 22nd February 1991, held in London outside 10 Downing Street. Parts of this transcript are missing where the dialogue was indistinct.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    [Indistinct] They are certainly an improvement on any proposals we have seen before but they still seem to fall a significant way short of the United Nations Resolutions and they do appear, on the basis of the analysis we have done thus far, to have some very significant deficiencies in them.

    The other important point, I think, is that it is not yet remotely clear whether the Iraqis accept these or are unlikely to do so. We have spent some time already analysing those proposals; that work will continue later on this morning and we will, of course, be in contact with the rest of our Allies. We will have a meeting later on this afternoon with colleagues and may have more to say at that stage.

    That is all I have to say for the moment.

    QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

    QUESTION:

    Can you tell us in what way you think these proposals are lacking?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Not at this moment, no, but perhaps later that will become apparent.

    QUESTION:

    Have you been speaking to President Bush….

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We have been in touch with the United States and I will be speaking to the President later.

    QUESTION:

    There is no mention of the Palestinian issue, Sir, in the new proposals.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am not going to discuss the proposals at this stage.

    QUESTION:

    [Inaudible]

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We will have to wait and see what happens later on today. They are well short of the United Nations Resolutions and they do have significant deficiencies in them; those significant deficiencies will have to be rectified but we will need to analyse them later on today and we will be meeting later on today to do so.

    QUESTION:

    [Inaudible]

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We are analysing them and examining them. At the moment they are not good enough. We will have to see what happens later on today.

    QUESTION:

    [Indistinct] Prime Minister, that it might split the international alliance against Iraq?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    No, I do not believe that will happen. Thank you all very much indeed!

  • Mr Major’s Doorstep Interview in London – 21 February 1991

    Below is Mr Major’s doorstep interview held in London on Thursday 21st February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Can I just say to you we have now had the opportunity to look very carefully at what Saddam Hussein seems to have said in his speech. It clearly is very disappointing. There is no glimmer of hope, no glimmer of compromise, no suggestion in the slightest way that he realises what he has done and the extent of the damage that he has caused by his illegal actions over recent months.

    Nothing in his speech, I fear, gives any hope of compromise or any suggestion that he is about to obey the Security Council Resolutions. I think this is an immense opportunity that has been lost; it has been lost and now it seems it has gone.

    There is no doubt whatsoever that Iraq is going to lose this conflict and that they will be despatched from Kuwait and that Kuwait will return back to its legal ownership. I had hoped that he might have announced – for he knows what is necessary – that he was going to adopt the Security Council Resolutions. Clearly he has not done so; there has been no suggestion of that at all and I regret that very much.

    QUESTION:

    Does this make a land war inevitable, Prime Minister?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We propose to ensure that Kuwait is liberated. Unless Saddam Hussein does adopt the Security Council Resolutions in full, then there will be a land conflict.

    QUESTION:

    [Inaudible]

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I think Saddam Hussein has effectively said to the Soviet Union that he does not seem to regard their peace movements as satisfactory and in any event, as we made clear, in our view they fell a good deal short of the Security Council Resolutions that all the Allies have previously worked to.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, it is clear now that the conflict must continue – that inevitably must include the possibility of a land war. Can you assure the families of those who may be called upon through their sons and daughters serving out there to suffer casualties, that every last chance was pursued to avert a land war?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    Over the last few months, we have done everything we possibly could firstly to prevent the conflict beginning and secondly, as I think everyone will recognise, to minimise casualties, both military casualties on our side and civilian casualties in Iraq. It has been a very remarkable operation to do that. The bombing campaign is there to minimise any casualties that subsequently there will be if we yet come to a land conflict, so we will have very great care for the safety of our troops. That has been the position and will continue to be the position.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, is it not the case that in his speech Saddam Hussein did in fact offer to withdraw from Kuwait and would that not be enough to avoid the bloodshed?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    He has made it perfectly clear I think, if one reads the whole of his speech – and it is in itself contradictory in some places – that any reasonable reading of his speech suggests no hint of compromise whatsoever, no acknowledgement of what he has done, no willingness to obey the Security Council Resolutions and nothing really that would bring this conflict to a conclusion.

    QUESTION:

    How ready do you think that the troops are and how decisive do you think the defeat is going to be that is going to be inflicted on Iraq?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    There is no doubt about the outcome of the conflict – there is absolutely no doubt about that at all: the Iraqis will lose. That, I think, has been clear for some time and is certainly crystal clear now.

    QUESTION:

    Do you see any merit in waiting to see what the Foreign Minister of Iraq says in private to the Soviet Union [indistinct] what the President said in the broadcast?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    If the Iraqis were going to accept and endorse the Security Council Resolutions, then I would have thought that Saddam Hussein would have taken the opportunity of saying that in his speech today. Quite clearly, he has not done so and in any event, I must repeat again that the proposals put forward by the Soviet Union fall a good deal short of the Security Council Resolutions.

    QUESTION:

    As one who may now be responsible for ordering, for agreeing to a further escalation of the conflict, are you easy in your own mind about taking that order?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    We have done everything we could to prevent this. What we must seek to do is to restore Kuwait to its rightful ownership and ensure that there is a durable peace and security in the Middle East. That is in everyone’s interest both in the short and the long term, and upon that reason I am content in my own mind that it is right.

    QUESTION:

    Prime Minister, have you reached the stage where the timing of the land battle is now a matter for the military commanders?

    PRIME MINISTER:

    I am not going to comment on the timing of the land battle. I do not think that would be at all wise.

    Thank you all very much indeed!

  • PMQT Written Answers – 21 February 1991

    Below is the text of the written answers relating to Prime Minister’s Question Time from 21st February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER:

     

    Engagements

    Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House I shall be having further meetings later today.

     

    The Gulf

    Mr. Wilson : To ask the Prime Minister (1) if he will place in the Library a copy of the translated text on which he based his initial response to the statement issued by the Iraqi Government on 15 February; (2) when he received an expert translation from the original of the statement put forward by the Iraqi Government on 15 February ; and if he will arrange for it to be placed in the Library.

    The Prime Minister : We received a copy of the full BBC translation of the Iraqi statement during the early afternoon of 15 February. This proved to be the same in all major respects as the English translation issued later by the Iraqi Government. Arrangements have been made for a copy of both texts to be placed in the Library of the House.

     

    Norwegian Prime Minister

    Mr. Flynn : To ask the Prime Minister what proposals were made by his Norwegian counterpart during their recent meeting ; and what response he made.

    The Prime Minister : I had discussions with Mrs. Brundtland on 13 February 1991 which covered a range of issues including developments in the Baltics, Europe and the Gulf.

     

    Hypothermia

    Mr. Allen : To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on Her Majesty’s Government’s progress in the last 10 years on achieving a co-ordinated policy for reducing hypothermia.

    The Prime Minister : There has been a significant overall decline in the levels of excess winter mortality (the difference between the number of deaths in the quarter from January to March and the quarter from July to September) between 1979 (47,311 deaths) and 1989 (23,853 deaths). In only a very small number of these was hypothermia identified as the underlying cause: 166 in 1989, plus an additional 209 cases where it was a contributory factor.

    While there is clearly a correlation between excess mortality and winter weather, the exact causes of increased deaths in winter are extremely complex. Factors include diet, alcohol intake, smoking, clothing (especially dressing appropriately when going out of doors in cold weather) and exercise, as well as adequate warmth in the home. The need for further research in this area is being investigated by the Medical Research Council.

    The improved figures in recent years are no doubt due in part to the progress we have been able to achieve through the collaborative efforts of Government, the statutory services and the voluntary sector, in the provision of community health and personal social services, as well as to the more general improvements in housing, social security benefits and overall standards of living.

     

    Arms Register

    Mr. Madden : To ask the Prime Minister what is the policy of Her Majesty’s Government towards the establishment by the United Nations of a register of arms ; and if he will make a statement.

    The Prime Minister : We are playing a full part in the United Nations study group set up to look at ways and means of promoting transparency in international transfers of conventional weapons, including the possibility of establishing a universal and non-discriminatory United Nations register. It is hoped that a report will be made to the United Nations Secretary-General later this year.

  • PMQT – 21 February 1991

    Below is the text of Prime Minister’s Question Time from 21st February 1991.

    PRIME MINISTER

     

    Engagements

    Q1. Mr. Viggers : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister (Mr. John Major) : This morning I presided at a meeting of the Cabinet and had meetings with ministerial colleagues and others. In addition to my duties in the House, I shall be having further meetings later today.

    Mr. Viggers : Bearing in mind the horrors that have been perpetrated in Kuwait, where thousands have been murdered and tortured, and bearing in mind also the awful nature of the weapons available to Saddam Hussein, does my right hon. Friend agree that there can be no doubt that the implementation of all the United Nations resolutions is both a just and a necessary cause? Does he also agree that since August Saddam Hussein has had every opportunity to withdraw from Kuwait, and that if a major land offensive should now be necessary our forces will carry with them the gratitude and good will of the entire nation?

    The Prime Minister : I very much agree with my hon. Friend. The only message that we wish to hear today is that Iraq is prepared to accept and implement all the Security Council resolutions in full and immediately. That is a message which can be given to us at any time. As I told the House on Tuesday, only when such a message is received and has begun to be implemented can there be an end to the conflict.

    Mr. Kinnock : Will the Prime Minister confirm that within the past 48 hours every one of the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council has made it crystal clear to Saddam Hussein yet again that if immediate and unconditional removal of all Iraqi forces were to take place the fighting could end? Does the Prime Minister agree that that is what the whole world wants–including, had they but the freedom to say it, the ordinary people of Iraq? Knowing that, is not it obvious that of all the many cruelties committed by Saddam Hussein, the greatest would be his failure to take the opportunity, which has always existed and still exists, to avert a major land battle and the great suffering that it would bring?

    The Prime Minister : It has certainly been made clear by the allies that we stand by the Security Council resolutions in full. As the House may know, I understand that, within the past few minutes, Saddam Hussein has begun broadcasting to Iraq. There is no indication yet of what he has said or what he will say, but I am bound to say that he preceded his broadcast with yet another Scud attack.

     

    Q2. Dr. Michael Clark : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Dr. Clark : Does my right hon. Friend agree that Britain is an inventive nation and that we maintain a strong science base? Will he, therefore, join me and other hon. Members from both sides of the House in congratulating the Royal Society of Chemistry on celebrating its 150th anniversary this year? Will he also pay tribute to the chemical industry, which contributes a balance of payments surplus of more than £2,000 million per annum to Britain?

    The Prime Minister : I am happy to do that. Only last Friday I had the pleasure of opening an innovative ICI factory in Runcorn in the north- west which will manufacture an alternative to CFCs–the first such factory in the world. The chemical industry has an impressive record both in investment in research and development and in the exploitation of that investment by our scientists. That is the basis of industry’s necessary recovery.

    Mr. Ashdown : Does the Prime Minister agree that no one, but no one, can relish the prospect of having to fight a land war in the Gulf, that even at the 11th hour every realistic avenue for peace ought to be pursued, but that we cannot allow ourselves to be distracted by cul-de-sac designed to delay the freedom of Kuwait? Will he confirm that the aim of the allies is not a temporary peace, leading to conflict later, but a durable, United Nations-based peace, a basic ingredient of which must be recognition of the legitimacy of Kuwait?

    The Prime Minister : I very much agree with the right hon. Gentleman, particularly about durability and security. There is no need for particular peace proposals. The peace proposals that we wish to hear are those that we have set out and agreed with our allies and others in the United Nations Security Council resolutions. That has been and remains the position. If Iraq is prepared to accept and implement those, the conditions exist for an end to the conflict. Without that, they do not exist.

    Mr. Barry Porter : Will my right hon. Friend take the opportunity today to congratulate the management and work force of the Rover Group on their contribution to the British export drive? Does he agree that the figures recently announced are self-evident proof that it was a very good deal between British Aerospace and Rover for the west midlands, the taxpayer and the country?

    The Prime Minister : There has been a remarkable renaissance in the motor car industry generally. That, of course, includes Rover.

     

    Q3. Mr. Lofthouse : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Lofthouse : Is the Prime Minister aware that West and South Yorkshire police and fire authorities are about to set their budgets this weekend for the forthcoming year? Is he also aware that the options before them are to do so in accordance with the Home Secretary’s guidelines, and thus maintain their present effective forces, or to set the budget according to the standard spending assessments of the Department of the Environment, which would result in the loss of hundreds of police and firemen’s jobs and consequently of services? Considering the increase in the crime rate and the ever-greater demands on the fire service, what advice does the right hon. Gentleman have for them?

    The Prime Minister : Like all authorities, this one must select its own priorities.

    Mr. William Powell : My right hon. Friend will be aware, not least from his knowledge of his own constituency, of the wonderful work done by many thousands of people working for village hall committees. Is he aware that, notwithstanding the marvellous efforts of our right hon. Friend the Member for St. Albans (Mr. Lilley) two years ago to protect village hall committees from some of the worst trepidations of EEC VAT directives, VAT remains a serious problem for them? Will he have a word with the Chancellor and encourage him to try to find a fiscal device to make life easier for those voluntary fund-raisers?

    The Prime Minister : It is not readily apparent what fiscal device my hon. Friend has in mind, but if he cares to suggest something I am sure that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor will examine it.

     

    Q4. Miss Hoey : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Lady to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Miss Hoey : Does the Prime Minister recall when he was a young man being a councillor in Ferndale ward in my constituency? Does he realise that this month there is 25 per cent. unemployment in Ferndale ward? Will he have time in the next couple of weeks to come and see the people there, many of whom have been out of work for more than two years, and tell them what more they can do to get jobs under the Conservative Government?

    The Prime Minister : While visiting Ferndale ward, which I had the privilege of representing for a period after 1968, I might also discuss with the people why, so many years later, nothing has been done by Lambeth council to improve their environment, their housing, their street cleaning or any of the other matters that concern them.

    Mr. Michael Brown : Does my right hon. Friend accept that the answers to any review of the community charge are staring us in the face from Westminster city hall? Would my right hon. Friend note that that council–a single-tier authority–has been able to reduce its community charge as a result of good housekeeping? Will my right hon. Friend ensure that Dame Shirley Porter is made a member of the Government review team immediately?

    The Prime Minister : We should be happy to have Dame Shirley’s advice on that or on many other matters and I am happy to congratulate Westminster city council on the community charge that it has levied. It is certainly an example to other authorities and I hope that they will follow that example.

     

    Q5. Mr. Bill Michie : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Michie : Does the Prime Minister agree that concern about loss of face, or part face, by any leader leading a nation involved in the Gulf war pales into insignificance when compared with the possible loss of life if a land war is embarked upon?

    The Prime Minister : Nobody wishes artificially to bring about a land war if it is avoidable. The hon. Gentleman should bear in mind who began this conflict, what the aims were and what is necessary both to end it and to ensure that there is a secure and durable peace, which means that conflict will not recommence at a later date. The hon. Gentleman should bear that in mind.

    Mr. Cash : When my right hon. Friend saw Chancellor Kohl the other day, did he discuss the German proposals for political union, which have now been submitted to the intergovernmental conference? Did he agree that those proposals were completely unworkable and that if they were put into effect they would mean, to all intents and purposes, the end of the Westminster Parliament?

    The Prime Minister : I discussed a range of matters with Chancellor Kohl. I did not discuss the letter which the French and the Germans put forward, although we discussed in general terms some of the matters related to both the economic and monetary union IGC and the political union IGC. I set out for Chancellor Kohl our concerns about those matters and the policies that we have set before the House.

     

    Q6. Mr. Michael : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Michael : On a day when the Government’s own gross domestic product figures have illustrated the depth of the recession and the frightening drop in production created by his policies as Chancellor and now as Prime Minister, will the right hon. Gentleman reflect on the stupidity of adding 6,000 experts on training the unemployed to the queues of unemployed? Opposition Members have lived with the misery caused by the Government for millions of people during the recession in the early 1980s. How does the right hon. Gentleman intend to prevent a repetition of that misery for millions in the 1990s?

    The Prime Minister : We have an excellent record on training, as the hon. Gentleman knows. As for economic circumstances in this country and elsewhere, the hon. Gentleman will know that three of the G7 countries are now officially in recession and two more have had a downturn in output. The hon. Gentleman imputes too much authority to me if he thinks that I am responsible for all that.

    Mr. Hill : Does my right hon. Friend agree that probably one of the biggest mistakes that the western alliance has made was to try to treat Saddam Hussein as though he were an honourable man when in fact his words are worthless? When my right hon. Friend next telephones President Bush, he may be able to tell him of some of the evidence that we have heard in the House about the human rights being destroyed in Kuwait and the genocide taking place there which must mean more and more deaths for the Kuwaitis every day.

    The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend expresses a view which is held by the vast majority of hon. Members in the House. There is no doubt that since 2 August the Iraqis have broken any number of international obligations and there must be some considerable concern about whether we can trust what is said to us by them.

     

    Q7. Mr. Loyden : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Loyden : Does the Prime Minister recall the statement that he made on 29 November following his election to his present position? He said then that he wanted to see a country at ease with itself. Does he believe that 2 million unemployed, the continuing decimation of our health service, the imposition of the hated poll tax and the current deepening recession represent a climate in which the people of this country can be at ease with themselves? Does he not now recognise that the only way to remove those problems is by the removal of the present Government?

    The Prime Minister : The hon. Gentleman is a class warrior who believes in conflict ; I am not. That is the difference between us.

     

    Q8. Mr. John Marshall : To ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 21 February.

    The Prime Minister : I refer my hon. Friend to the reply that I gave some moments ago.

    Mr. Marshall : Will my right hon. Friend tell the House and the country which five local authorities have the highest community charge, which five have the worst education results and which five have the largest rent arrears?

    The Prime Minister : I shall be happy to write to my hon. Friend will a detailed list of those authorities. I think that I can tell him now, however, that he will find no Conservative authorities among them, and an overwhelming predominance of Labour authorities, almost certainly including Brent, Camden and Lambeth.