MEP says Blair 'should be indicted for war crimes'

British Liberal MEP Chris Davies says the only reason Tony Blair "should be coming to Europe is to be indicted for war crimes at the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

Davies says the former UK premier should be "standing in the dock" at The Hague for "crimes against humanity" for his role in the Iraq war, rather than being an unofficial candidate for the presidency of the EU.

He said Blair's support for the US-led invasion of Iraq "totally disqualifies" him for the lucrative post being created by the Lisbon treaty.

"Yes, let him come to Europe," said Davies, "but let it be to the Court where he should go on trial for committing the UK to a totally unjustified war."

Davies' comments come as he launched what he accepts is a "tongue-in-cheek" bid for the presidency of the European council, the post tipped to be offered to Blair at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels on 29 October.

As part of his "campaign", Davies has written to each of Europe's 27 heads of government to say that he believes his qualifications for the job are as good as other candidates suggested so far and that he is available for interview.

He told this website, "I have not had any replies yet but, to date, I am the only declared candidate."

In a swipe against Blair, he argues that he has never "deceived a parliament or been responsible for the illegal invasion of another country".

Davies hopes that his bid for the presidency will highlight how "limited is the circle of individuals said to be in the running for Europe's top job".

With the person selected likely to have a major role in shaping the EU's future direction, he says that candidates should be required to set out their positions and indicate publicly what will be their personal priorities if they are selected.

Davies said, "The backroom manoeuvrings now taking place are a very poor substitute for an open selection process. We have millions of talented people in Europe, and more than half of them are women, so why is the recruitment net not being cast wider?

"European citizens should be told whether this is just a beauty contest for middle aged males or a professional recruitment exercise intended to select the best person for the job, someone with ideas about how to shape Europe's future."

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