What If Gordon Banks Had Played, Part 16

"Sir Humphrey: In practical terms we have the usual six options. One do nothing, two issue a statement deploring the scene, three launch an official protest, four cut off aid, five break off diplomatic relations and six declare war.

Jim: Which should we do.

Sir Humphrey: Well if we do nothing we implicitly agree with the speech, two if we issue a statement we just look foolish, three if we lodge a protest it will be ignored, four we can't cut off aid because we don't give them any, five if we break off diplomatic relations we can't negotiate the oil rig contracts and six if we declare war it might just look as if we're over-reacting." - Yes, Prime Minister

“Truth will come to light; murder cannot be hid long” - The Merchant of Venice

8th June 1977 - Dublin

“You'd better see this, sir.” Taoiseach Jack Lynch rubbed his eyes as he woke from his slumber.

“What's happening?” he looked at his alarm clock. “It's four in the morning man.”

“There's been some shootings, senior IRA men in Dublin.”

“There have been shootings forever. Why on earth are you waking me up?”

“British troops were doing the shooting, sir. SAS men.”

“British troops, you say? Mary, Mother of God, there's going to be trouble now.”

- - -

Two hours later Lynch was seated in the Taoiseach's office alongside Michael O'Kennedy, Ireland's Foreign Minister. “It is an act of war Jack, but what can we do? We have already cut diplomatic relations, and our economies are so intertwined it's hurting us badly. Yes, we can write cross letters and complain to the United Nations, but unless you want us to call their bluff and send troops in. What can we do?”

“That's what people want though, Mick. They want me to send in troops. No one cares about three dead terrorists, but they have had enough of the British, they've had enough of the horror stories and the refugees from the North. But what can we do? If I send in the troops I am only sending so many of our boys to their deaths, and what is more, without a United Nations resolution it would be us who would be the warmongers! Us in the wrong!” Lynch shook his head in exasperation.

“Legally it would be self-defence. Their troops have already attacked us.”

“I cannot do it, Mick.”

“What to do then, Jack?”

“We need support. Talk to Reagan. He's an Irishman, or claims to be. See if he'll back it up in the Security Council. See if he's an Irishman when it's not election time. I don't want this to turn into a war, Mick, but something will have to happen.”

From TIME Magazine, 8th August 1977

Seamus tells me he is twenty-five, but through the stubble and the dirt it is hard to judge people's ages as I talk to the men of the number three holding camp through the gaps in the barbed wire. He tells me that he is married, and has two young children, although he hasn't seem them since the British army swept into West Belfast in January. There are three main holding camps around Belfast, each holding around ten thousand Catholics, supposedly in transit to the custom built new-towns in the South of Northern Ireland. While the British Government have promised to re-home everyone, many people, like Seamus, have been in the camps for over six months and have few illusions about being set free in the immediate future. The holding camps are classed as temporary holding accommodation, not like the internment camps where suspected terrorists are held, however there is no mistaking the intent of the barbed wire and gates that surround the camps.

The British Government no longer along foreign journalists to report freely from within the country, not since the beginning of the security forces operation in Northern Ireland last January. Even the words used to describe the chaos in Northern Ireland are contentious. Supporters of the IRA, the paramilitary group that has been fighting against the British army to try and secure a united Ireland, describe the events of past years as a war. Even Catholics with more moderate views, though the counter-productive actions of the British forces reduces their numbers daily, describe the Government's policy towards Northern Ireland since January 1977 as persecution. Protestants in Northern Ireland, and the British public on the mainland retain the same euphemism that has been used to describe events since the late sixties - “the Troubles”.

Approved foreign journalists in Britain need to be accompanied by a Government minder, and are prevented from travelling to Northern Ireland, so instead I cross the border into Northern Ireland incognito. The British Government have closed their border with Ireland to incomers, although they are happy to let Catholic refugees leave, part of the unspoken policy of ethnic cleansing that holds sway in Ulster. Since the British sent SAS units across the border into Ireland to assassinate senior IRA figures in June the Irish have also stepped up security on the border. Over recent weeks there has been a steady build up of tanks and infantry on the British border, and the Irish government, while reluctant to take any action that could lead to military confrontation, have signalled their intent to respond with force should British armed forces encroach upon Irish territory again.

While the border is closed, it has its exits and entrances. I am driven across by two men in the back of a van. They know the route well and the banter that passes between them suggests they make the trip regularly. I wonder briefly what goods are normally transported via such clandestine routes. I am dropped off at an abandoned farmhouse, somewhere in the stretches of no-mans land in the South of the province where the control of the British army is at best occasional. There I am met by most hosts, three Irishmen, all in their late twenties. They give their names only as Jack, Liam and Nathan, no surnames. They all claim to be members only of Sinn Fein and all deny fighting for the IRA, but their conversation over the next few days, talk of guns and killings and whispered exchanges when I am almost out of earshot suggest otherwise.

After visiting the holding camp near Belfast I am taken to one the internment camps. There is no chance of approaching the wire hear. The camp is double fenced and heavily patrolled by British troops. Nathan tells me that there have been several attempts at mass escapes, and that the British have killed hundreds of people trying to escape. He takes me over the rough ground to the North where we find recently dug earth. “Graves,” he tells me in a muffled voice. The area of dug earth is about five by eight yards; I hesitate to think about what horrors may lie beneath.

We spend the night in a farmhouse somewhere in rural Ulster, I don't ask where precisely, and would not be told if I did. Nathan explains that it is not safe for them to remain in their homes. The threat is not the British army, whose displacement of Catholic families is steady, methodical and normally preceded by offers of compulsory purchase and compensation for those who leave peacefully. The fear is of the death squads - masked young men their own age who come at night to torch Catholic homes. Few in Northern Ireland now bother to keep up the pretence that the death squads do not work with the implicit support of the security sources.

My guides tell me that the British army are the choice of evil for the IRA troops, they will at least take prisoners into custody rather than shooting them outright. Worse are the Protestant paramilitaries, the Ulster Defence Council, who without any opposition from the British army have become a second army, financed by the far-right, bolstered by international mercenaries and with arms bought on the international black market. What my hosts don't mention is the other side of the coin - the IRA paramilitaries are also financed by the misappropriation of funds from charities supporting human rights in Northern Ireland, their guns come from, amongst others, Colonel Gaddaffi, and there are as many mercenaries fighting for the Irish as against. Nathan tells me horror stories of lynchings by the UDC, of gun battles and the killing of Catholic wounded, of the systematic rape of Catholic women captured by UDC gangs.

Two days later I return to Britain, this time through the proper channels, having applied for permission from the British home office. I am met at Heathrow airport by my minder, and driven to central London to my approved hotel. London is a far cry from the “swinging sixties” of yore. While the city's landmarks are the same, its soul has gone. While the streets I am driven through are quiet and peaceful, it is the peace of Potemkin villages, and here and there one can see the boarded up windows and the burnt out buildings. Graffiti on the underground reads “Irish out” and “No Surrender”.

I am granted an interview with the British Foreign Secretary, John Nott. Nott looks more like a bureaucrat than a politician. He is bespectacled and the aurora of hair around his bald scalp slightly unkempt. He welcomes me politely, but it is painfully clear that my presence is unwelcome. I ask him about the mass graves in Northern Ireland. Nott shakes his head dismissively, “The thing you have to realise is that the IRA are not only terrorists, they are masters of propaganda. They are particularly good at playing to the foreign stage. For years they've survived on money from American fundraisers who think they are supporting oppressed victims, paying for the so-called starving families of so-called political prisoners, when the money is actually being spent on blowing the limbs off women and children.”

“There have been some escape attempts by terrorists from the internment camps and, yes, on occasion it has been necessary to use lethal force to contain them. People have been killed, that's a matter of public record. The present situation in Northern Ireland makes it impossible to trace those people's relatives, indeed most of them give false names, let alone return their remains to their next of kin. They are given a decent Christian burial on site. This stuff about mass graves is nonsense, utter nonsense.”

“What about protestant death squads?” I ask Mr Nott.

“No, such things. Or at least, not in the sense of large scale organised activity. Yes, there is sectarian violence in Northern Ireland and there is no denying that. Certainly it has grown worse in recent months, but it has been happening for almost a decade. It will always be a problem when we have two communities with such a historical enmity living on top of one another. By knocking down the worst slums, the areas that are under the control of paramilitaries we are getting rid of these trouble spots, places where Catholic enclaves back onto Protestant estates. We are getting rid of the sort of places where trouble flares.”

In his plush Whitehall office John Nott sounds eminently reasonable and trustworthy, but I cannot forget the looks of fear I saw on the faces in Northern Ireland and the barren square of recently dug earth outside the internment camp.

The next morning I am woken at my hotel by three men from the Government. They are perfectly polite and gentlemanly, but it is clear that there is to be no discussion or negotiation. They tell me that I have been found to have been reporting from Northern Ireland without a licence and am to be deported. They give me ten minutes to pack my belongings before I am driven to the airport.

It is easy to sympathise with Britain. The murder of Queen Elizabeth was a horrendous crime and it is understandable that people should wish to punish those responsible. However, the normal Catholic men, women and children of Northern Ireland did not fire those bullets, and in Prime Minister Enoch Powell's Britain it is they who are being punished.

U.S. Department of State United Kingdom Country Report on Human Rights Practices Released by the Bureau of Human Rights & Humanitarian Affairs

UNITED KINGDOM

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) is a longstanding constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government. In June 1977 the Constitutional Monarch, Queen ELIZABETH II, was assassinated by the Irish Republican Army (IRA), a paramilitary groups operating from Northern Ireland, a province of the United Kingdom. As a result there have been repressive anti-terrorist measures and a consequential decrease in human rights.

The constitutional arrangements of the UK consist of a lower legislative chamber (the House of Commons), elected in periodic multiparty elections, an upper chamber (the House of Lords) with power to revise and delay implementation of laws, made up primarily of hereditary peers and senior clergy of the established Church of England, along with a limited number of life peers appointed during the last Labour Government. The Government was elected in March 1977 and received a huge majority in an election that saw a divided opposition and severe restrictions on opposition rallies and some limited claims of intimidation by troops stationed at polling stations. The governing Conservative Party has an overwhelming majority in both Houses of Parliament and there is little effective scrutiny of the Government. Under the state of emergency the Government has limited powers to rule by decree (“orders in council”) and the Parliament is bypassed on many securities matters. There is an independent judiciary, but Parliament may overrule its decisions through legislation and there are recent reports of pressure being placed upon judges by the Government.

Police forces under the nominal control of civilian officials, but since the 1976 declaration of emergency have in effect been under the direct control of the Government. Since 1976 the intelligence agency MI5 has had the authority to act in support of other law enforcement agencies in the prevention and detection of terrorist crimes. In many areas military units are used to supplement security arrangements. In Northern Ireland security is the responsibility of the armed forces, with the civilian police force under the direct control of the military commander. Although the security forces generally respected the rule of law, members of the police force committed some human rights abuses and there were serious human rights abuses in Northern Ireland.

A highly developed, diversified and de-regulated, market-based economy provides most residents with a high standard of living. Unemployment tends to be higher among some demographic groups, especially racial minorities for whom there are no anti-discrimination measures. The Government provides contributory social welfare services, including a national health system, limited housing and family benefits, and heavily subsidised higher education.

Human rights have come under increasing pressure since the announcement of the state of emergency. Internment has been introduced and the security forces are able to arrest and detain suspects for an unlimited period upon suspicion of terrorist activity. There is limited press and broadcasting freedom and several publications have been banned. Foreign journalists are not able to operate freely and must be vetted by the Home Office. Freedom of assembly is curtailed in some instances. There have been widespread accusations of police brutality. Prison overcrowding remains a problem, especially in Northern Ireland internment camps and violence within prisons is a severe problem, particularly for inmates of Irish extraction. There were 342 killings within prisons in 1977. Societal discrimination against non-white minorities and against Catholics is a severe problem, which the Conservative Government has failed to take any steps to remedy.

The UK is a signatory of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), however this has not been incorporated into British law. A claim of unlawful killing against the United Kingdom by the relatives of Joseph CAHILL, Sean MAC STIOFAIN, Ruairi O’BRADAIGH, Daithi O'CONNELL & Sean MCKENNA is currently before the European Court of Human Rights, but the present Government has indicated that it does regard of the court as having any legitimacy and has indicated its intention to ignore future rulings of the court.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:

a. Political and Other Extra judicial Killing

There were several accusations of political killings by the Government. The Republic of Ireland has alleged British Security Forces' involvement in the assassination of three Irish citizens and prominent members of the IRA (Messrs O'CONNELL, O'BRADAIGH & MCKENNA) in Dublin in June 1977, suspicions have also been raised over the Government's involvement in the unsolved murders of several Republican figures in Northern Ireland, including Mr CAHILL and Mr MAC STIOFAIN, both senior IRA figures killed in June 1977. There are no official UK Government inquiries underway into these accusations or others, but Amnesty International estimates that they may number as high as 50. In the aftermath of the assassination of Queen Elizabeth II security forces shot and killed 13 people during action to control rioting and looting in London and Manchester.

The Prison Service reported 843 deaths in custody during the year, of which 143 were self-inflicted, 45 were due to natural causes, 432 were considered homicide, and one remained under investigation. 312 prisoners were reported killed during escape attempts in Northern Ireland, although Republican sources have claimed this figure is a severe underestimate. The Prison Service has been accused of “turning a blind eye” or wilfully aiding and abetting attacks upon Republican and Irish prisoners. There have been no moves to attempt to reduce these numbers. The nongovernmental organisation (NGO) Prison Reform Trust condemned the violence in prisons before being wound-up in August 1977.

Coroners do not have the power to compel those suspected of involvement in extra judicial killing to testify at inquests, and the relatives of the deceased receive no advance disclosure of evidence. Coroners are permitted to inquire only into “how”--that is “by what means”--the deceased died, rather than into the broad circumstances of death. Human rights groups argue that this narrow definition shields wrongdoers, including soldiers and police officers, and unnecessarily keeps family members from learning the truth of the circumstances regarding their relative's death.

b. Disappearance

There are several hundred disappearances claimed by Republican sources. The British Government has claimed these are most likely to be as a result of large scale population movements within Northern Ireland, leading to many families being separated into different holding camps. Investigations continued into at least 14 terrorist-perpetrated disappearances that date back to 1972, although there is no longer a dedicated investigative team. The victims, usually members of the security forces, suspected informers, or petty criminals are thought to have been murdered and buried in secret locations.

c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

The law forbids torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment; however, police occasionally abused detainees, especially in Northern Ireland. Human rights organisations report that such abuse is a matter of serious concern. Most detainees who claim physical mistreatment have the right to an immediate medical examination. A trial judge must examine such a claim. Confessions obtained by abusive treatment are not admissible in court, and judges can exclude even voluntary confessions. However, these rights do not extend do those charged with terrorist offences and terrorist suspects have repeatedly made allegations of torture and interrogation under duress. The British Government have rejected such allegations as a deliberate campaign of misinformation. The use of live ammunition in Northern Ireland and the use of rubber bullets in response to rioting on the mainland have come under severe criticism from the U.N. Committee Against Torture and other NGO's. The Government has refused to respond to any criticism from outside bodies, but has responded to domestic criticism by claiming such events as purely emergency measures. Prison conditions generally met minimum international standards, but overcrowding is a serious issue as are the large number of killings inside prisons. Terrorist prisoners are routinely placed in prisons away from their local areas, are denied protective solitary confinement and are particular victims of brutality and killings within prisons. It is claimed that prison authorities have on occasion turned a blind eye to such activities. The Government denies all international observers access to prisons and detention camps.

d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

The authorities can arrest without a warrant anywhere in the UK persons they have reason to suspect of being involved in terrorism. The authorities may detain such persons (even those under the age of 18) for up to 72 hours without legal representation or judicial review and this period may be extended indefinitely. Suspects may be interrogated during this time, and confessions obtained may be used in subsequent court proceedings. Over 10,000 people are reportedly interned in Northern Ireland, with up to ten times this number held in temporary refugee camps.

e. Denial of Fair Public Trial

The judiciary is independent and in the main provides citizens with a generally fair and efficient judicial process. The UK has several levels of courts. The vast majority of criminal cases are heard by magistrates courts, which are managed by locally based committees. Their decisions may be appealed to the Crown Court, which also hears criminal cases requiring a jury trial, or to the High Court. Crown Court convictions may be appealed to the Court of Appeal, which may in turn refer cases involving points of law to the House of Lords. The law provides for a fair trial, and the authorities respect and enforce the law in this regard. Defendants enjoy a presumption of innocence until proven guilty, the right to question witnesses against them, and the right to appeal to successively higher courts. Under the state of emergency terrorist offences are tried under separate regulations before a panel of three judges. Hearsay evidence, uncorroborated confessions and evidence obtained through covert means by the security services are all admissible and the testimony of a senior police officer is admissible as prima facie evidence of a suspect's membership of a proscribed organisation. Judges are able to infer guilt from a refusal to answer questions. Human rights organisations have expressed concern that the act violates certain fundamental rights, such as the right to silence and the rights to freedom of expression and privacy. The definition of what is a terrorist related offence is not strictly defined and there is some evidence of a gradual widening of the scope of these regulations.

f. Arbitrary interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or Correspondence

Warrants normally are required for a police search of private premises. Under the present state of emergency the security services are able to search and seize property in connection with suspected terrorist activity without a court order. In Northern Ireland the homes and property of many Catholic families have been seized by the Government and Catholic inhabitants forcibly removed to holding camps and designated custom built new-towns. Up until January 1977 this was conducted through compulsory purchase orders and homeowners and tenants received appropriate compensation. Since 1977 there have been no adequate provisions for compensation although the Government insist that those involved will be fully compensated in the fullness of time. Catholic inhabitants of relocation camps are routinely separated from their families and belongings. The security services are free to intercept communications of those suspected of terrorist activity without a court warrant.

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

The print media is dominated by a handful of national daily newspapers, all privately owned and independent (though often generally aligned with a political party). About half the electronic media are run by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), which is funded by the Government but traditionally enjoys complete editorial independence. Corporations under renewable government license run the remainder. The media in Britain has a strong history of a free press, limited only by the informal and voluntary D-Notice system for matters of national security. Under the terms of the state of emergency the free press has been circumscribed - several far-left publications have been banned and newspapers undergo Government censorship before publication. Notably such scrutiny is of limited severity and moderate criticism of the Government in the media is tolerated. Academic freedom is respected.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The law provides for the right of peaceful assembly, but that right is severely limited in practice where it would impose a cost on public convenience. The law provides for freedom of association, but that right is limited. The Government may proscribe any organisation that is involved in, promotes, or encourages terrorism within the United Kingdom. Membership in proscribed paramilitary groups is punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment, and suspects may be interred indefinitely without charge. Supporting paramilitary groups is also an imprisonable offence, as is wearing clothing that arouses a reasonable suspicion that the wearer belongs to or supports a proscribed organisation. Human rights monitors, while acknowledging the deterrent effects of proscription powers, argue for the repeal of this law because it violates the fundamental right of freedom of association and an individual's right to express personal opinions and beliefs.

c. Freedom of Religion

Governmental policy is to ensure freedom of religion for traditional and non-traditional worshippers, however there is wide scale public and institutional hostility towards the Catholic minority. In the immediate aftermath of the assassination of Queen ELIZABETH II in June 1977 there were many attacks upon Catholic churches and clergy, including Westminster Cathedral.

d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The majority of citizens enjoy freedom of movement within the country and in foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation. Under the State of Emergency the Government has the freedom to limit the freedom of movement in connection with the prevention of terrorism, but these measures have not been brought into force. The United Kingdom's only land border (with the Republic of Ireland) is currently closed to incoming people, although residents are free to pass into the Republic of Ireland. UK residents of foreign extraction are able to apply for repatriation grants to assist with returning their countries of origin.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Government

Citizens have the right to change their government and freely exercise that right. The Government is formed on the basis of a majority of seats in the House of Commons, which are contested in elections held at intervals not longer than 5 years. While the UK has a strong tradition of multiparty democracy, the Conservative party currently faces only limited organised opposition with other political parties fractured into numerous splinter groups following the 1977 election. The main opposition Party is the Labour Party, currently split into two opposing factions lead by Merlyn REES and Anthony (Tony) W BENN. Both factions are themselves fractious and disorganised and are presently engaged in a lengthy legal battle over the financial assets of the Labour party. In the 1977 election there were some restrictions on opposition political activity and some limited claims of intimidation at polling stations. Women and minorities face no legal constraints on voting or holding office. However, in practice Parliament is overwhelmingly male and of white extraction.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights

The Government is open to domestic investigation of human rights cases, thought there is no Governmental support for human rights groups and publication of the findings of such groups in the mass media is, in practice, limited. The current Conservative Government refuse all co-operation with international human rights groups on the basis of a strict interpretation of national sovereignty. A number of international nongovernmental human rights organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch/Helsinki, are based in the UK. The Government cooperates with such groups in the many cases, with the exception of investigations into ongoing anti-terrorist measures.

Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability, Language, or Social Status

The Conservative Government has repealed the Race relations Act introduced by the last Labour Government and there are no current legal sanctions against discrimination. Discrimination on grounds of race and religion is widespread and severe, especially against those of Irish, Indian, Pakistani and Afro-Caribbean origin.

Religious Minorities

There is active state persecution of Catholics within Northern Ireland. Catholic residents have systematically been removed from their homes and relocated to custom built new-towns, often without compensation. Catholics are also overwhelmingly more likely to be held in internment camps on suspicion of involvement with terrorism. On the UK mainland Catholics are subject to wide scale discrimination and suffer disproportionately in regard of housing and unemployment. International Catholic organisations and the Vatican have condemned the treatment of Catholics in the United Kingdom.

National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Persons of Irish, African and Afro-Caribbean, South Asian, or Middle Eastern origin face increasingly common acts of societal violence and widespread overt discrimination. There is only limited Government action to combat these developments.

18 September 1977 - The White House, Washington DC

Ronald Reagan peered at the document through his glasses. “Worrying I'm sure,” he said finally.

“People are beginning to comment. Ted Kennedy and the Irish community are up in arms about the whole affair. PBS are running documentaries 'exposing' Britain.”

“Jack Lynch has spoken to me several times,” Al Haig said. “He is very keen that we give Ireland our support.” Reagan nodded non-committally. Haig continued, “He has hinted that the Republic may be prepared to move closer to the USA, even sanction some limited NATO co-operation, in return for co-operation against the UK.”

“What sort of co-operation?” Reagan said, leaning back in his chair.

“He'd like us to put pressure on the British Government - possibly financial, support their motion at the United Nations, possibly as far as trade sanctions.”

“The British are our boys,” James Baker said. “We cannot expect the sort of co-operation we've received from the British from the Irish, Lynch simply can't offer what we need. The Brits may be assholes, but they're our assholes.”

“People do care what happens in England,” Reagan said. “Lots of them have friends and family there. If we back one of our allies in the Middle East and their political opponents start meeting with nasty accidents, well, then, yes, that's a shame. But it isn't the end of the world. This is Western Europe though. What's going to happen there, Al? If a couple of years down the road folks are going to be digging up mass graves we need to wash our hands of it now.”

“Hard to say, Mr President, the situation seems to be steadily deteriorating. There's still no end to terrorist violence, in fact it seems to be spreading to the British mainland. Paramilitary groups on both sides of the religious divide seem to be picking up support from inner city estates and each bomb or assassination brings harsher retaliation from the Government.”

“What if we offer to mediate? Send in a team?”

“Pointless,” said Haig. “The Brits won't talk to the terrorists; they refuse to recognise them as anything other than criminals. Moreover Powell will refuse any outside help as a threat to British sovereignty; he's a true isolationist.”

“I'm starting to think that Prime Minister Powell is the problem here,” Reagan said thoughtfully.

“Could we replace him,” Richard Allen asked.

“No, Richard, it's not quite the same,” the President said. “The public don't care if some dictator in Belize or Laos or Botswana gets shot - most of them probably think Botswana's in Africa...”

“Botswana is in Africa, Mr President.”

“Whatever, too many people would care if a British politician met with an accident. It is out of the question. What do you say, Al?”

“There is a limited number of options we can take, sir. This isn't Suez, the British economy is in good shape and we can't just flex our muscles in the IMF and bring Britain to heal. I would recommend that we support the Irish resolution in the Security Council, and that we let our concerns be known to the British Government, but anything as extreme as trade sanctions is premature. Intelligence says that Powell is a Soviet sympathiser, we could risk pushing the Brits towards the Soviets.”

“Powell's a communist?” Reagan took his glasses off and stared at Haig. “I thought he was one of us.”

“No, Mr President. He has certain pro-Russian sentiments, but he is certainly not a communist.” The Oval office fell silent as the assembled politicians and advisers attempted to rationalise this apparent oxymoron in their heads.

“What about the opposition. Who are our alternatives?”

“The main opposition figure is one Tony Benn. Intelligence reports have him down as a communist.”

“Another red.”

“There is a possibility of having Powell removed from within his own party,” Haig continued. “His party in the House of Commons are mainly loyalists, but there are still some possible focuses for dissent, plausible alternative leaders.”

“Good, sound them out,” the President said finally. “Make sure our Ambassador lets the British Government know of our serious concerns and our willingness to mediate. And then keep it under review.”

From the Times, 2nd January 1978, “Exchange Rates Fixed as Europe Prepares for Single Currency”

Exchange rates between the six original members of the European Economic Community were yesterday fixed in the penultimate step towards the adoption of the single European currency, the Euro, from the 1st January 1980. Leo Tindemans, the President of the European Community welcomed the news, describing it as a “great step towards European Unity”.