Member News
By Lesley Foottit - 7th October 2009
David Cameron is to announce the recruitment of General Sir Richard Dannatt as an adviser on defence issues.
General Dannatt has recently been embroiled in a row with Number 10 over troop deployment to Afghanistan.
He is being made a peer as part of the agreement, meaning he could serve as minister.
Adding to the speculation, he has said he would "theoretically" be interested in joining government.
"If someone in a future life wants me to do something else, well, let them ask the question and I will give the answer," he said.
"No-one's asked me that question - that question has not been put in a public way."
Speaking at the Conservative conference in Manchester, Cameron said: "I have spoken to him on previous occasions, as well as recently, about his views about how we improve our armed services and support their families and make sure we rebuild that military covenant, how we successfully pursue what we are doing in Afghanistan.
"He is a man of great talent and ability. He has been a great public servant and I think he has more to do."
However, the news threatened to be overshadowed as Chris Grayling, apparently uninformed of events, inadvertently criticised his own party.
Asked by the BBC for his views on General Dannatt's appointment, the shadow home secretary called it a "political gimmick".
Apparently under the mistaken impression it was Gordon Brown, and not his own leader, who was offering the general a job, he told BBC News: "I admire the work of General Dannatt and other senior generals who've done so much in Afghanistan and done so much to lead.
"I hope that this isn't a political gimmick. We've seen too many appointments in this government of external people where it's all been about Gordon Brown's PR.
"General Dannatt's an experienced figure and should rightly be working alongside government. I'm always suspicious of government's motives when it does things like this."
Home secretary Alan Johnson seized on the gaffe, saying: "What we've seen today is that Chris Grayling is so keen to do Britain down, he'll attack anything - including his own party."
As the mistake generated conference headlines, Grayling brushed it off, claiming he had misheard the question.
He added: "I wish I had known before as I would have given him a much more enthusiastic welcome."
Dods Parliamentary Communications Ltd
garry
7th Oct 2009 at 8:48 pm