Earlier this year Boris Johnson signed an EDM (a sort of Parliamentary petition open to MPs to sign) calling for
A permanent statue of Sir Keith [Park, who played a leading role in the Battle of Britain] on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square.
You couldn’t get much clearer than that really could you? So of course now Boris Johnson is Mayor he’s going ahead and keeping his promise isn’t he? Er, no. Now the votes are safely counted, he’s ditched his promise. Whatever you think of the merits of permanent Park statue versus rotating modern art on the Fourth Plinth, it’s pretty striking to make a promise ahead of polling day and then shortly after carry out a drastic u-turn.
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I am sorely tempted to email the MPs who signed the EDM and point out that the idea that “the failure of Nazi Germany to defeat the RAF in 1940 … forced Hitler to call off the planned invasion of Britain”, while a common part of British folklore, is quite inaccurate.
The ‘planned’ invasion was more of a fantasy, and there was little prospect that the Germans could have got past the massive Royal Navy of the time whether the RAF still existed or not.
Which isn’t to denigrate the courage or skill of RAF pilots, but more to recognise that of Royal Navy seamen.
Perhaps we should mount HMS Belfast on the plinth?
The point is not the historical accuracy of the RAF v Navy credentials but the fact that Tory Boris has ditched one of his pre-election pledges. We need to use every media trick we can afford to expose what the voters can expect from Tory promises if they should become a Government. We had eleven yrs of Thatcherism, then Thatcherism courtesy of John Major & now 11yrs of Thatcherism disguised as New Labour. The Country needs a REAL change. Our task is to convince voters, against ferocious media opposition, that only LibDems offer that real change.
Is there not a distinction to be made between supporting a cause and a pledge to take a particular action?
I have read the EDM linked to above, and I have seen other quotes where Boris voiced his support but I haven’t seen any actual pledge that if he was elected he would erect the statue. Certainly, looks like having your cake and eating it, but just want to be clear if this was an actual menifesto pledge or not.
All that aside, do you agree with the decision?
Hi, I am disgusted with the organisers of the Keith Park statue, they commissioned a NEw Zealand master bronze sculptor to do the wrk , see their web site , and the reneged. They paid him peanuts and tok his marquettes as their own ..he is still waiting for the rest of the payment.
Bad as Boris it seems a good bunch.