A disgraceful Government Minister

[alf corbyn]

i cannot understand why the powers that be!!! are so reluctant to give a medal to some of the most courageous people both royal and merchant navies. they did a fantastic job under the most horrenous circumstances, and the russians; who are notorious for not giving things away were very happy to give them a medal. i think the whole business of government saleries should be looked into and they should be paid on what they actually contribute to the running of the country; then perhaps the good ones (if any) could then be given a medal. alf

[Captain Kong]

This is Robathan`s bio according to WIKIPEDIA..................
.
.Andrew RobathanFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
The Right Honourable
Andrew Robathan
MP
Under-Secretary of State for Defence
Incumbent
Assumed office
13 May 2010
Prime Minister David Cameron
Member of Parliament
for South Leicestershire
Blaby (1992–2010)
Incumbent
Assumed office
9 April 1992
Preceded by Nigel Lawson
Majority 15,524 (28.4%)
Personal details
Born 17 July 1951 (1951-07-17) (age 60)
Surrey, England
Nationality British
Political party Conservative
Spouse(s) Rachael Maunder
Children daughter born july 1999 son born december 1996

Andrew Robert George Robathan (born 17 July 1951) is a British Conservative politician, and Member of Parliament (MP) for South Leicestershire (previously Blaby) in Leicestershire. He is currently a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence and Minister for Veterans.[1]

Contents [hide]
1 Biography
1.1 Personal life
2 Parliamentary career
2.1 Disputes
2.2 Expenses
3 References
4 External links
4.1 News items


[edit] BiographyEducated at Merchant Taylors' School in Northwood, Robathan went on to Oriel College, Oxford gaining a BA in Modern History in 1973.

On graduation he studied at the British Army Royal Military Academy Sandhurst before becoming an officer in the Coldstream Guards from 1974–89, and the Special Air Service (SAS). He also studied at the Staff College, Camberley.[2]

He worked for BP from 1991–92, but volunteered to return to the Army between January and April 1991 during the First Gulf War, serving as chief of staff of the Prisoner of War Guard Force in Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait.[3]

[edit] Personal lifeHe married Rachel Maunder in December 1991 in Westminster. They have a son (born December 1996) and daughter (born July 1999). He speaks French and German, and is a Freeman of the City of London.

[edit] Parliamentary careerRobathan was elected to Hammersmith and Fulham Council in May 1990, defeating the Labour mayor in Eel Brook Ward.[3]

He resigned in late 1991 to fight the 1992 general election, elected as MP for Blaby in 1992 succeeding Nigel Lawson, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer. Blaby is a safe Conservative seat, but Robathan's majority has been considerably reduced due to major boundary changes in 1997, creating a rise in Liberal Democrat support within the constituency. In the past two elections, Robathan has faced J. David Morgan of the Labour Party. Following a public enquiry by the Electoral Commission and submissions from the public including Robathan, the Blaby constituency will be known as South Leicestershire from the next general election onwards.

Robathan was heckled by opposing MPs for putting his hands in his pockets - which is strictly against the rules of the Palace of Westminster - on 19 December 1994.[4]

Robathan spent four years on the departmental select committee between 1997 and 2001. He is a former chairman, currently Vice chairman, of the All Party Cycling Group, and vice chairman of the All Party Renewable and Sustainable Energy Group.[3]

Robathan was John Redwood's Parliamentary Private Secretary to Iain Sproat, Minister for Sport, in the Major administration before returning to the backbenches when the Conservatives lost the 1997 general election. He returned to the front-bench as Trade and Industry Spokesman in 2002.

In the 2001 Conservative Party leadership election, Robathan was a keen supporter of Michael Portillo. After six months on the backbenches, Robathan was appointed Commons Liaison to the Lords and then a defence spokesman in which capacity he fought the 2005 general election.

In the 2005 Conservative leadership election, Robathan was one of the very first MPs to declare his support for David Cameron and was rewarded with one of only five paid posts in opposition, Opposition Deputy Chief Whip.[3]

In May 2010, he was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence with responsibility for Welfare and Veterans.[2]

[edit] DisputesRobathan took a very personal interest in the affairs of John Prescott, the then Deputy Prime Minister. Their mutual antagonism was not helped by Robathan's hand in reporting Prescott to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards over Prescott's complicated living arrangements. At the time, the DPM had four homes and was not declaring the benefit received from a flat owned by the RMT in Clapham.

On 23 July 2007, Robathan was ridiculed in Parliament by George Galloway MP for his poor English grammar in a letter of complaint he had sent to the Standards and Privileges Commissioner.[5]

The website Political Scrapbook criticised Andrew Robathan's actions towards a female MP, implying he was sexist. Robathan allegedly tried to throw Stella Creasy MP out of a members only lift assuming she was a researcher. The website later revealed that Rothbathan had also "tried to force a post-natal colleague to vote in person" PS reported that he interrogated Meg Hillier MP about "how many weeks". The website labelled Robathan "The Blue Dinasour", citing his voting record as further evidence.[6]

On 7 December 2011 Robathan attracted controversy by comparing the claim by veterans of the WWII Arctic Convoys for an Arctic Star medal to the proliferation of honours made by "authoritarian regimes" and "dictators": "One can look, for instance, at North Korean generals who are covered in medals or Gaddafi or Saddam Hussein... We have taken the view in this country, traditionally, that medals will only be awarded for campaigns that show risk and rigour.".[7]
[edit]
ExpensesMain article: United Kingdom Parliamentary expenses scandal
Robathan was criticized in the 2009 Parliamentary expenses scandal for claiming on personal books and journals,[8] and for claiming the maximum second home entitlement of £24,006 in the period 2008–09.[9] Robathan was listed by the Daily Telegraph as an MP who employs a family member and claims their salary from the taxpayer on House of Commons expenses.[10] His 2008/09 expenses were ranked 621st out of 645 in descending order of cost to the tax payer.[citation needed]

On 24 August 2009, he was quoted in The Times newspaper suggesting that MP's salaries be increased to £110,000. These comments were heavily frowned upon by his colleagues in Parliament and the media.[11]

[Roger Dyer]

The emotion I experienced after reading the comments made by Andrew Robathan M.P.in the presence of Arctic Convoy veterans is not easy to describe - 'blind fury' comes close.

How it is that people such as he ( a pompous prat masquerading as a Minister of the Crown) are able to attain high office in government never ceases to amaze me. Surely, not on merit alone. In the case of Mr.Robathan it seems he does have an 'eye' for the 'saloon passage ride up the inside' so to speak (please understand that this is Australian horse-racing vernacular and has no sexual connotations whatsoever). His support for Mr.Cameron whilst in Opposition earned him the post of Opposition Deputy Chief Whip (with it's added monetary benefits, of course). Since May, 2010, he has been the Minister responsible for Veteran's Affairs, something akin to placing a square peg in a round hole. One notable highlight during his political career was his assertion that M.P.'s should receive a salary 105,000 - 110,000 pounds per.annum ( almost doubling the existing salary). He reasoned that such an increase would attract a better class of politician. The sheer arrogance of the man is boundless.

I was surprised to learn that Mr.Robathan, was formerly a 'Rupert' in the S.A.S. (a group of men for whom I have the utmost respect). It had me wondering how on earth he was able to instill any trust in those men under his command. Imagine having to rely on his decision in a life or death situation

Who knows? after this current debacle Mr.Cameron may realise that Mr.Robathan's continued support is a luxury he can no longer afford. Quite simply, Mr. Robathan is an insensitive twit and recent events clearly demonstrate his unsuitability for ministerial office. The man is an utter disgrace.

......regards, Roger

[John Albert Evans]

Yesterday I sent an email to Andrew Robathan MP giving my views of his comments on the Arctic Medal. My views are the same as all of you who have commented in this post. I did not sail in the convoys becase I wasn't in the MN at the time but I have sailed with a number of men who had and who told me what the conditions were like, horrendous is to nice a word to describe them.

I had a 'snotty' reply last night from either him or his office telling me in no uncertain terms not to believe what I read in the papers and to read Hansard instead.

The tone of his email was contemptable.

This morning i went to his reply to check Hansard and reply to him but the the email has vanished into the ether.

Has anyone else had a reply from him or his office.

John Albert Evans.

[Chris Allman]

Yes John, Ivan Cloherty had a reply similar to yours, see Post 10 of this thread.

Chris.

[Captain Kong]

Here he is , Nice Boy.

[Willie Saunders]

Im just glad that I am not one of his constituents, Mrs Thatcher had more b***s than him.Disgrace doesnt even start to describe this lump of organic waste.

[Roger Dyer]

Hi Shipmates,

Following information from Ivan (post #10) and John Albert (post #14) I have read, in full, the Hansard record covering the 'Arctic Veteran's Medal' debate in Westminster Hall on the 6/12/11.

It must be of some comfort to those heroes in the white berets, as it will surely be to the members of this site, that during the course of the debate, strong cross-party support for the veterans was evident (notwithstanding the negativity of 'you know who'). Apparently, the original decision not to award a separate campaign medal to Arctic veterans was made by the Admiralty in 1946 ( a decision that was as wrong then as it is today). Whilst speaking, Mr.Robathan sought to justify that decision by Admiralty, suggesting that the Atlantic Star was a fitting recognition of service for those engaged on the Russian convoys. To illustrate that point he mentioned the horrendous loss of ships and men as a result of U-Boat action during the ' Battle of the Atlantic'. He did acknowledge that those on the Arctic convoys suffered 'appalling conditions', but, rather conveniently, chose not to elaborate further. It seems that he took great care not to say anything that would identify a campaign fought separately from the one that took place in the North Atlantic. He made no mention of the fact that in addition to the U-Boat threat, those engaged on the convoys up to Archangel and Murmansk were continually subject to attack by surface vessels and enemy aircraft based in Norway. Whilst in no way wishing to diminish the sacrifice made by seamen involved in the Battle of the Atlantic, or their huge contribution to final victory, it might be fair to say that, for much of the time, the men on the Arctic convoys were engaged in a war of even greater intensity.

Clearly, Robathan is not supportive of awards being issued to these veterans. Is it unreasonable to think that when debating the issue, as Minister for Veteran's Affairs, his attitude could have been more sympathetic? apparently so. We should remember that the man is a 'politician' and as such would identify the need to minimise Government expense as being his primary concern and not, as one might assume, the affairs of veteran servicemen for which, incidentally, he draws a handsome salary.

As a course of action suggested to others by Mr.Robathan himself, I read Hansard and still see no reason to change my opinion of this most unpleasant man. As far as I can tell his attitude epitomises all that is wrong with a British 'class' system that has no place in this modern age.

Let us hope that sometime soon these veteran seamen will receive the award they so richly deserve and that the forthcoming independent review will rectify and bring to an end 65 years of Government apathy.


............... Roger

[happy daze john in oz]

All ministers have advisors, people who are supposed to advise the minister and guide him through some of the roblems he may face.I am not sure what manner of advisors this minister has but it would appear they are as out of touch with reality as most politicians. Politicians for those who do nt understand are peopel who at the ballot box will tell the world that they are going into politica to make a difference. The problem lies in not what they do, but rather in what they do not do. Much of this is a result of the size of the trough they all have their heads in. It is so big it covers not only their ears but ther eye as well.

[Ivan Cloherty]

Well put Roger, however I think his attitude smells more of the playground spoilsport who says "I never got one your not getting one"

Also the man keeps his own email address close to his chest as everything is filtered through Diana Thompson at THOMPSOMDM@parliament.uk, Perhaps as we have more than 6000 readers/members a simple message such as "Arctic Heroes, shame on you" would cause a little bit of inconvenience to the system and may make Ms Thompson see her boss in a new light.