Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Senior Lib Dem blasts own leader
A SENIOR Liberal Democrat has blasted his own party leader in Wales, dubbing recent comments on fox hunting a "disgrace".
South Wales West AM Peter Black has launched a scathing attack on his party’s Welsh leader, Lembit Opik, for saying a ban on hunting would lead to violence in the countryside.
PETER BLACK, on his own website, said:"The reported comments of Lembit Opik in today's Western Mail are a disgrace and he should withdraw them. Although Lembit condemns violence and illegal acts his warning that civil unrest and even targeted violence will follow a ban on hunting with hounds effectively amounts to an explicit threat on behalf of the fox-killers. It is not a position that any responsible politician should take.
"I personally do not believe that 'young men would resort to violence if "the only way of life they know" is criminalised while others would risk imprisonment or heavy fines to defy the ban', but in saying that he believes that such a thing could happen, Lembit has got off the fence and effectively issued a call to arms. He is not speaking on behalf of the Welsh Liberal Democrats or me on this issue.
"Labour Cardiff West MP KEVIN BRENNAN said:"I couldn’t agree more with Peter Black’s comments. It was irresponsible of Lembit to talk of possible violence if hunting is banned after our vote in the Commons.
"What this comment reveals more than anything I think is the gulf between what the Liberal Democrats say in the cities and what they say in their rural seats. Recently we have seen the Liberals campaigning against anti-social behaviour in by-elections and council elections despite having voted against tough Labour measures to combat petty crime.
"This ferocious attack on Lembit Opik is symptomatic of today’s Liberal Party - unsure about what they stand for and lacking in solid, fully costed policies they can stand up in public."
South Wales West AM Peter Black has launched a scathing attack on his party’s Welsh leader, Lembit Opik, for saying a ban on hunting would lead to violence in the countryside.
PETER BLACK, on his own website, said:"The reported comments of Lembit Opik in today's Western Mail are a disgrace and he should withdraw them. Although Lembit condemns violence and illegal acts his warning that civil unrest and even targeted violence will follow a ban on hunting with hounds effectively amounts to an explicit threat on behalf of the fox-killers. It is not a position that any responsible politician should take.
"I personally do not believe that 'young men would resort to violence if "the only way of life they know" is criminalised while others would risk imprisonment or heavy fines to defy the ban', but in saying that he believes that such a thing could happen, Lembit has got off the fence and effectively issued a call to arms. He is not speaking on behalf of the Welsh Liberal Democrats or me on this issue.
"Labour Cardiff West MP KEVIN BRENNAN said:"I couldn’t agree more with Peter Black’s comments. It was irresponsible of Lembit to talk of possible violence if hunting is banned after our vote in the Commons.
"What this comment reveals more than anything I think is the gulf between what the Liberal Democrats say in the cities and what they say in their rural seats. Recently we have seen the Liberals campaigning against anti-social behaviour in by-elections and council elections despite having voted against tough Labour measures to combat petty crime.
"This ferocious attack on Lembit Opik is symptomatic of today’s Liberal Party - unsure about what they stand for and lacking in solid, fully costed policies they can stand up in public."
