You Have To Hand It To Her!

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You have to admire Joanna Lumley for the single-handed way in which she completely turned round the government’s attitude to the rights of our Gurkha soldiers.

Having presented a petition to 10 Downing Street, she later forced the immigration minister to agree in front of television cameras that the government would take another look at the issue. After a Commons defeat, it then agreed to let all Gurkha veterans who had served four years or more in the British Army before 1997 settle in Britain.

Speaking to the Commons Home Affairs Committee recently, the Defence Minister criticised her for her subsequent 'deathly silence' even though, as I understand it, the government asked her to take a back seat. Understandably, Ms Lumley was very upset by this.

So, yesterday, the Prime Minister made yet another phone call to Ms Lumley and expressed his regrets about the minister’s remarks who later apologised ‘unreservedly for any offence caused’.

You have to hand it to Ms Lumley. She has stood up for what she believes in and has forced ministers and a prime minister to humble themselves.

She should think of standing for Parliament!
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More Like These Please!

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Esther Rantzen, the former host of BBC’s That’s Life, has said that she is going to stand for Luton south at the next election. I wish the feisty lady, who sprang into action at the time of the MPs expenses scandal, all the best. We could do with more like her in Parliament to stir things up a bit.

I hope also that Joanna Lumley stands for Parliament, as she is another lady who has the guts to stand up and say what she thinks. The daughter of a former Gurkha Regiment officer, she recently championed the cause of the Gurkhas and single-handedly managed to edge ‘Bronco’ Brown and government minister, Phil Woolas, into humiliating corners from which they could not withdraw.

Yes, we could do with many more of the likes of Esther Rantzen, and Joanna Lumley! More power to them!
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