May faces backlash
LONDON: Theresa May will face protests outside Parliament and anger from MPs in the Commons today, despite her attempts to limit the fallout from her decision to sanction Britain’s involvement in airstrikes on Syria over the weekend.
Wary of anger among MPs at being sidelined, the Prime Minister wrote to her parliamentary party explaining the action and published the Government’s legal argument for intervention. However, antiwar protesters are already planning to demonstrate in Westminster and her failure to consult Parliament on the airstrikes means she will face the ire of MPs when she addresses them today.
Just hours after Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote to May demanding the publication of the legal case for the intervention, the Government released the tests applied before intervention took place. It appears to be an attempt by May to limit the concerns in Parliament, including within her own party.
The paper argued the UK had met three demands under international law. It said there was convincing evidence of extreme humanitarian distress; there was no practicable alternative to the use of force; and the action was necessary and proportionate.
It concluded: ‘‘In these circumstances, and as an exceptional measure on grounds of overwhelming humanitarian necessity, military intervention to strike carefully considered, specifically identified targets in order effectively to alleviate humanitarian distress by degrading the Syrian regime’s chemical weapons capability and deterring further chemical weapons attacks was necessary and proportionate and therefore legally justifiable.’’
May also set out the case in a letter to Tory MPs, but made no promises about consulting Parliament. Some Conservatives, including veteran Ken Clarke, had previously broken cover to say MPs should be given a vote.
With May emphasising that the military action would be strictly limited, Tories look like they will back away from causing problems for their leader. Should opposition MPs find a way to engineer a vote, it also appears likely May would have had a majority in Parliament for action, with the DUP as well as some Labour MPs offering their support.
However, many of the Labour MPs who back the action are frustrated by the failure to recall Parliament.
The airstrikes drew support from some nonpolitical quarters. Londonbased foreign policy thinktank the Henry Jackson Society praised May for ‘‘taking resolute action’’ to help deter further use of chemical weapons.
Others were less enthusiastic. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament described the action as defying international law and criticised May for bypassing Parliament. — Guardian News and Media