While I'm getting enthused over the leadership contest, I can't help thinking that other things matter more. The issue of Iraqi interpreters that Lynne Featherstone highlights "Government’s death sentence for Iraqi employees: a first-hand account".
The news broke on the BBC in July that interpreters who worked for our armed forces were under threat of death from militants and the British government were dragging their feet in the most pusillanimous and ungracious way possible about helping them.
It says much about both our political system and the attitude of a great many people in this country that this is not and has not remained headline news. It bubbles to the surface every now and then. Brown announced a grudging package of measures in October, dealt with in a Newsnight blog here. Financing for resettlement for those who have worked for us for a year, and are still working for us, and, under unclear circumstances,some may arrive in the UK. So basically there are people who are risking their lives,and their families lives, to help our troops, and we are going to do as little as we can decently get away with to help them. Shame on you, Mr Brown.
We have an action site at http://ourcampaign.org.uk/interpreters and there is more information at Dan Hardie's blog.
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