BYE BYE SIR LORD STEEL

DON’T LET THE DOOR HIT YOUR BUTT ON THE WAY OUT

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So, this fellow in his smart frock has resigned from the Liberal Democrats not long after poor wee Willie Rennie said that they believed every word he said about being deaf and not being able to hear the embarrassing inquiry questions he was asked about proposing a knighthood for Cyril Smith, all the while knowing that he was an abuser of children. Had he spoken out, maybe he could have saved some child the unutterable horror of being sexually molested by that thing?

Image result for cyril smith

According to the statement, he has left the LibDems and will resign from the House of Lords “as soon as possible”.

I’m not sure how long it takes to write a resignation letter and send it to whoever it is you have to send it to, but I have suggested this quick and easy way of expediting the matter with the least delay:

Dear Sir or Madam,

I hereby resign from the House of Lords with immediate effect.

Yours faithfully

David Steel

That should do it.

++++++++++

Here’s Wee Willie making an ass of himself…

PS: It was too late when it was discovered by the public that Smith was a child abuser, for his knighthood to be removed, given that he was already dead. (According to the authorities, a K  dies with the person, although if that is the case, why do we still refer to dead people by their title eg Sir Winston Churchill, Sir Anthony Eden?)

The question is, should the queen now remove Steel’s knighthood which he holds along with his peerage?

 

 

 

52 thoughts on “BYE BYE SIR LORD STEEL”

  1. Well it would be the government that made that decision by err “recommending” to the Queen that they be removed. As far as I’m concerned they should both be removed. It’s not just Steel’s involvement in the Smith issue, he was up to his eyes in it with the Thorpe case too.

    Compare and contrast Rennie’s actions re Steel and his words re Derek McKay. I though McKay’s actions were reprehensible but as far as I know they weren’t actually illegal. Whereas Thorpe and Smith’s were…

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    1. I agree.

      I always get angrier with SNP people than with others, because they give the likes of Carlaw and that Labour blokey whose name escapes me, and of course the BBC a chance to get stuck in to them, but, for all I was and am furious with Derek, as far as I can make out, he did nothing illegal (although he may have been pestering the lad and pestering other SNP people),

      Smith’s crimes were unutterably foul, and I don’t know much about Thorpe, but didn’t he try to have someone killed?

      By comparison, telling a 16 year-old, who could legally be married and a father, is small beer.

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      1. “I don’t know much about Thorpe, but didn’t he try to have someone killed?”

        He tried to get his ex lover Norman Scott killed. And a dog (horror!) actually was killed. At the time of their relationship, they could both have been arrested and imprisoned so you can see why it was then kept secret but the conspiracy was after legalisation.

        Thorpe (and 3 others) were found not guilty but the judge’s direction to the jury was so biased that Peter Cook did a sketch parodying it, which context aside is absolutely hilarious. And not actually that far away from how biased it actually was

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorpe_affair#Committal_and_trial

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      2. Who knows if Derek would pester/groom a 16 year old boy.
        Mayhap he could go down a
        Very dark road.

        Obviously your masters in the snp took a different view and on that I for once agree with the snp hierarchy

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        1. Well, Niko. There’s nothing illegal in flirting with a 16 year old… you say boy, I’d remind you that a 16 year old can leave school, get married, work and pay taxes, and father or bear a child.

          That’s not illegal. What becomes illegal is if he was being flirted with against his will.

          It’s a sad tale. Even if it was legal and above board and the guy liked it… it was crass stupidity of the highest order and the SNP was indeed right to come down on it like a ton of bricks.

          The SNP is sometimes criticised for throwing people under the bus, if they are accused of anything at all.

          Unlike the Tories who seem to stand by their man to the end… and then throw him under the bus (eg Mr Thomson)

          Clearly the Liberals who seem these days to be a pound shop Tory party, are cut from the same cloth.

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  2. Like every other large scale enquiry, the whitewash tankers were pre-booked.

    Steel will no doubt drag this out and turn up every day to get his hand-out and expenses. Anyone else remember this arsewipe insisting that he be addressed as Sir in interviews? Shame Smith didn’t get prosecuted, this one could’ve got done for complicity and aiding and abetting.

    This is one sick place. Get the Republic done!

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    1. Apparently everyone in the Westminster party knew about this, most especially in this Liberal Democrats, but like with so many of these people, it was all kept quiet.

      Sod the poor kids who suffered.

      Now none of us believes a word they say. I think parliaments and governments must bulk buy whitewash.

      And not a word on the Today programme.

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  3. I have’t read the whole report yet , but I’ve read the conclusions.
    I have no sympathy at all for Steel.
    The pity is that he’ll almost certainly be the only one to be hung out to dry for this.
    For the rest , it’s all about could have done better, lessons need to learned. The usual stuff.
    Steel, I think was frank about what he knew and what he did, or didn’t do. He’s paying for that.
    I’d like to think he came to reflect on just how wrong he was and how morally repugnant his actions were, but I think he naively assumed others might be equally as frank and he’d be found to be one of the least among many. Fat chance. The establishment have decided that you’ll draw the fire on this one, David, but you know how it goes…party first, every man for himself and devil take the hindmost. You’ve been f***** David, just like those poor kids. Except those kids were innocent , they did no wrong, they had no choices.

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      2. Re Fairbairn.
        Around 30 years ago, a radiographer on night shift pointed to an x-ray and asked me what I thought this gentleman had just been admitted for.
        That looks like a Domestos bottle, inserted blunt end first, said I.
        Correct said she, and he was now in theatre to have it extracted.
        None of this happened officially, and there is no record of it happening.

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  5. It was not just his own party that covered up for the vile Cyril Smith. It was common knowledge in the bars and restaurants at Westminster and the attitude was ‘Oh, Cyril, he is a card – how does he get away with it? So either nobody at the time seemed to realise the seriousness of Smith’s action or the others did not want an investigation that could implicate individuals right across the political spectrum. Two senior Tory politicians were always mentioned in conversations regarding Cyril Smith.

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    1. My reaction is that it must have been horrific for the kids. No child should ever have to go through sexual abuse, but without being insulting, Smith was hardly an attractive prospect for an adult. Did none of them stop to think that it could have been their kids.

      I’ve long suspected that this is so widely spread and goes so high up that it will never be allowed to be properly made public. It crosses political divides, and is in every walk of life… show biz, church, law, military.

      It’s a case of if you snitch on me I’ll blow the gaff on someone FAR more “important”

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  6. Although I think Mr Steele was wrong not to have investigated the allegations about Cyril Smith at the time, especially since he indicated that he believed the allegations made against Mr Smith.

    However, I can understand the enormous pressure which would have been brought to bear on Mr Steele not to take any action.

    Panda Paws above refers to the Jeremy Thorpe case and it was clear evidence of how the narrow group of power brokers in Westminster hang together to protect their own. It is not that they have any love for the miscreant, but because the miscreant often knows where the bodies are buried and also, too close an examination will reveal the web of institutionalised corruption and privilege.

    Many years ago in my work, I came across an example of particularly egregious conduct and felt I should investigate it (since I had the authority to institute an investigation). I was under pressure from people who had given me the information, not to do anything because it might compromise their relationships with colleagues. I was under pressure from the employee’s colleagues because of a misplaced solidarity. I was under pressure from senior officials because the investigation might undermine the authority ‘Don’t rock the boat’, ‘It will blow over’ ‘the victim is pretty unsavoury’, etc. This was followed up with the dark warning: ‘investigate if you must, but, if it all blows up, you’re on your own.’ (I did institute and investigation, but, before I could complete it, the person resigned and then obtained a letter from his GP that he was severely depressed and verging on suicidal. Also, I did not have enough evidence to help the police make a case, since they have to ‘prove beyond a reasonable doubt’, whereas for work purposes I only had to meet ‘the balance of probabilities’ criterion. I was fairly close, but a supportive lawyer within the organisation advised that a competent trade union official could demonstrate that what I had was inadequate.

    Steele was also a new leader and markedly younger than most of his colleagues in the Liberal Party, many of whom had been members during the relatively recent Thorpe Affair. He had also, as the youngest MP in the House put through the Abortion Reform Act, in the teeth of ferocious opposition, with the churches in the van. While he stuck courageously with the reform, undoubtedly, it must have come at great personal cost.

    It is possible that the memory of the obloquy he had faced made him baulk at investigating Smith and, probably, he had been warned by wealthy associates of Smith’s that, since it had happened before Smith joined the Liberals, Steele had no right to investigate it and, if he did he might well face hefty PERSONAL legal costs because the Party’sgrandees would not expend party finances to defend him.

    Although, as I said, I think Steele was wrong, he was pretty honest about what he had done at the time and why he had done what he did.

    Despite the fact that the example I have referred to being more than 25 years ago, there are occasions when I wake at night wondering if I could have done more.

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    1. Interesting, Alasdair.

      I feel for you. It can’t be easy to have to make these decisions and of course nothing is 100% clear cut.

      Obviously I have no idea what your colleague had done, nor am I asking. (If you had wanted to disclose that I’m sure you would have.)

      Who knows what I would have done in Steel’s place? I suppose my out is that I have never had the least interest in being in charge of anything at any time in my life, so it could never have arisen. Every time anyone has tried to promote me, I’ve run fast in the opposite direction. Coalface Tris!

      So perhaps it is unfair for me to criticise someone who did want to take on responsibility.

      But it says something pretty crap about the Liberal Democrats that they might have thrown the man under a bus for doing the right thing… and refused to pay legal costs for trying to do something about a paedophile who appears to have made use of 9 year old orphans.

      I can barely type that without tears in my eyes, so bad do I feel for these kids.

      Thanks for sharing that story.

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    2. PS. Even though I can understand your point about how difficult it might have been for Steel to dob the vile old man in… there is absolutely no way on earth that he should have been given what the Brits laughably call “an honour”.

      When you think about it, who would want one of their tainted honours now when you get them for being asexual pervert?(Because he’s far from the only one).

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    1. Great minds, Jake…we appear to have thought of that at the same time.

      I’ve just read a heartbreaking plea from a Twitter account, Wee half pint:

      Deryck De McBoomer and 10 others liked
      WeeHalfPint
      @weehalfpintt
      ·
      3h
      This is my FINAL attempt.
      I’ve asked politely & angrily as a Scottish adult survivor of a pedophile, addiction & attempted suicide, as a confidante & an ear for victims, for 7 days now, for a statement from
      @willie_rennie
      &
      @joswinson
      ! Please tag&retweet

      Someone in the threat that followed suggested a petition to get Rennie, who was quick to condemn McKay, to make a statement to the press.

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    2. I agree, Jake. However, Mr Steele was not the only one who acted in such a way, despite knowing of the appalling things that had been perpetrated. Mrs Thatcher approved a knighthood for the MP Peter Morrison. How many people knew what Jimmy Savile had done, yet supported his knighthood?

      Once people become compromised by a corrupt system, and also begin to benefit from being part of the clique, sadly, they go along with it.

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  8. There are currently around four and a half thousand registered sex offenders living in communities across Scotland with a further fifteen hundred or so under lock and key. These aren’t all paedophiles of course, victims will come from all groups including children.

    There are, it can be reasonably argued, many more who have offended and haven’t been caught or have the potential but have not yet performed a criminal act. The more dangerous are in the former category where the offender has a level of power/influence and/or intelligence that enables him to avoid detection. The Savilles, the Smiths etc… are well known examples of high profile offenders but there will be many more Joe Public types living out their outwardly ordinary lives awaiting or actively pursuing their next opportunity to offend.

    Public awareness of the child abuse problem is slowly increasing although it seems to be concentrating on celebrities and institutions rather than its incidence across society in general. Maybe there’s an element of convenience there? Maybe it’s more comfortable as a society to focus our scrutiny on the reprehensible behaviour of the ‘great and the good’ than to look closer to home? Maybe it’s just a good place to start?
    Politicians (cough) like Wullie Rennie however, do themselves or more importantly, the helpless victims no favours by trying to hide complicity using half baked attempts to brush it all under the carpet for the ‘good of the party.’

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    1. > Maybe it’s more comfortable as a society to focus our scrutiny on the reprehensible behaviour of the ‘great and the good’ than to look closer to home? Maybe it’s just a good place to start?

      Start with the “role models” and high profile cases, and it may cow the “less important” people into stopping.

      Not that I think that works, but that’s the argument for starting from the middle. Of course, the fact that the top get away with it all undermines that theory completely.

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    3. greig12, Undoubtedly, sexual abuse of young people is much more widespread than most people actually think and it occurs in all strata of society. I have a friend, now in his 80s who was a social worker all his life and he reports that when he started out in the early 1960s, he was shocked at how common it was. He also reports that many mothers were aware that their children were being abused, but because of their financial status as married women, to try to act against their husbands could result in them becoming destitute and homeless and their children with them. There was also an institutional unwillingness to ‘threaten the sanctity of the marriage bond’. To make such things public could result in public disgrace and shaming of the family. Many of these women were placed in an intolerable situation and suffered from guilt for all of their lives.
      Women do have more rights nowadays, there are laws and protocols for dealing with abuse. There is a wider public acceptance that such conduct goes on in families and reporting is encouraged. Schools, for example, to sterling work in identifying instances. Sadly, much is still unreported and undetected. The increase in ‘cases’ of abuse is almost certainly due to the fact that more instances are now reported rather than that ‘things have got worse’ as the media like to say. Also, the media are not particularly interested in ordinary people. “Celebrities” sell papers and advertising.

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      1. Absolutely, Alasdair.

        It’s everywhere, and it’s not restricted by class.

        And it’s nothing new.

        Also, I treat any report from the top into it with deep suspicion.

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  9. I’m looking forward to hearing wee wullie’s resignation statement today at Hollyrood.
    He was the leader of the lib dems in Scotland that cleared Steel of any wrongdoing so shurely he will resign today.
    Ah, that would be in the other parallel universe where libdems are the liberal moderates and not this one where liberal means well anything goes as long as your friends in the media suppress this story as a squirrel.
    I feel sorry for the SNP at times like this, they’re being conditioned by the media to be under the control of them, witness the week long coverage of Derek McKay, the Steel thing over in an afternoon.
    Have a look at EBC in Scotlands coverage this morning and we’re back to SNP bad, throw in the Greens and we’ve got a dictatorship government. This in a system designed to never have a majority government BUTT it’s ok if it’s a onionist led result.
    So what’s the onionist agenda for today in Hollyrood?
    Questions on the hospital, roads, trains and free bus passes for the youth as well as the pensioners.
    The wee rennie will be back on his mental health problems of youth soapbox, we now know that he has helped to bury one cause of the problem, maybe he should resign as leader of the liedems but won’t.
    The media will just do the same, bury the bad publicity for the onion and fill the pages with the next big one up, we all know to what I refer.

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    1. If I were Wee Willie, I’d definitely steer clear of youth mental health.

      That lady who wrote demanding that he make a statement has lived with mental health problems all her adult life as a direct result of what he has covered up.

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    2. I missed Wuggie’s apology and resignation, today. My hearing is not as good as it was, so perhaps I missed this honourable (!) person falling on his sword.

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  10. Hope wee annie gets a question.
    See this morning a government minister is calling her letter to doris is just a distraction.
    In this case i kind of agree with wee annie, drug consumption rooms may help reduce the death rate from drugs, who knows, but the rUK government’s view is that it is a distraction and we need to put more effort into stopping the import of drugs. This from a government that has 6, SIX, officers looking after the coastal borders of Scotland to the west and a smaller number on the east coast.
    Unfortunately, kit malthouse is correct about annie and the onionist chums, they’re a distraction.
    I agree. wee willie would be ill advised to raise the issue of youth mental health today BUTT he’s not worried as the media have dropped the issue of steel, no red face for willie.If you look at the EBC coverage of the drugs conference it has all the markings of the confusion agenda, this use of consumption rooms will lead to english county drug barons spreading into Scotland, what they’re not doing it already. They report drug finds on the M74 at Lockerbie coming north.
    I thought the idea was that the user was supplied with clean drugs and equipment under supervision and that they can’t use what they buy in the streets thus reducing the need to mug and steal to source their habit.
    The other sites are equally using the ‘Confusion Agenda’ technique, even this mornings STV has murdo’s eleven winning a match and on the same page the articles on they’re tactics before the match.
    Even you, Tris, put the old stuff into the archive when it’s out of date.

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    1. And the Liberal Democrats failed to do this.

      Even if they suggested to Mr Steel that his resignation would be expected, they left him to do it.

      He should have been removed from the party and he should lose his titles.

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  12. Another win for grayling, he make the turd runway legislation.
    That means doris gets let off the hook as he’s not going to appeal.
    Back to super airport on the Thames, perhaps.
    Brother just got his new free TV license,expires in May, he will have to buy one as he isn’t on benefits.

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  13. Tris
    Carlos jackass is still on about the fall in education standards in Scotland, doesn’t his mirror work?, It will be the daily mail he looks at the pictures in.
    Wee willie must have read your advice, his ‘question’ was on the Heathrow third runway, what?, yes the ronway that is in englandland which the SG can have an influence over, what?
    Wee annie’s ‘question’ was about the drugs conference being a party political broadcast for the SG, what?
    No mention about why the minister, man of the people, malthouse, saying her letter to doris was a distraction, they’ve got the cringe right enough.

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    1. Jeez, even Richard Leonard must know that what goes on in London is kinda outside the Scottish government’s control. He was wasting the time of all MSPs and their salaries that WE pay.

      I see Wells managed to get the figures all wrong and Nicola was able to correct her.

      Get used to it Wells.

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  14. The Lib Dems don’t like to be critisised do they? They are very liberal with accusations and smears but when facts are put to them they run away.

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