BRITAIN: Soldier's father polls 10% against Blair

Reg Keys, whose son was killed on duty in Iraq in 2003, stood against British PM Tony Blair in his Sedgefield constituency in the May 5th general election and won 10.2% of votes cast. Blair retained the seat, although his share of the vote fell by 6%. Andy Newman, in a post election piece on the Socialist Unity Network website commented: "Whether he survives or not, the abiding image of Blair will now always be of his haunted eyes, hiding behind an impassive mask, as he stood just feet behind Reg Keys, the man whose son Blair has killed, as Keys in a dignified and moving speech stripped any comfort away from Blair's pyrrhic triumph."

From Green Left Weekly, May 25, 2005.

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From GLW issue 627