Much has been made of David Miliband’s vitriol against the Tories and their EU parliament grouping, and the intimation that Eric Pickles is Anti-Semitic. William Hague complained yesterday, and has now formalised that complaint by writing to the Foreign Secretary, highlighting the factual errors and misconceptions that dominated Miliband’s speech. Hague ends the letter by writing:
The Foreign Secretary should not make such slurs without factual certainty full stop, and certainly never for party political gain. The episode displayed Miliband’s fundamental immaturity; he was simply playing to the gallery.‘Democratic politics is at its best when it is a civilised and constructive debate between different points of view. It is deeply regrettable that you have listened to those who prefer the politics of slur and smear. Your duty as the country’s Foreign Secretary is to support our nation’s good relations with our allies. By putting your immediate partisan interests before that duty you have fallen short in that responsibility.’
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