General Chat

I would be more inclined to view this ladies case with compassion ,if she would pay back ALL the money she has made off the charity she was supposed to support,as it is she deserves to be left without protection ,as are the people dependent on the charity she has screwed. As it stands they make a good pair,he screws the election results in Manchester ,and she makes thousands from a charity she is supposed to be helping.They are BOTH chancers.Fred.PtfA&G&G&S.

I can't see what good bumping Cherie off would do - is she really a high risk target? If the Queen and the Pope can ride round in open-top cars it seems a litte OTT for Cherie to need that sort of protection. And when's the last time someone got assasinated in a car in the western World: John Kennedy?

Lucy, her husband was elected, not her!!!! and if she was earning more money than him, I still think its wrong for the car to be paid for by the taxpayer, in fact both of them are as Roxanne say's, scrounger's with their free holidays etc, sooner their gone the better. He only joined the Labour party because he knew he'd never make it in the other's. Len

I think she should be protected - and I'm reasonably sure she's paid her fair whack of taxes. We elect them - we should be prepared to protect them and their spouses is my opinion. Lucy x

Why on earth should Cherie Blair pay for her own protection? Admittedly she is a high profile target for attack, but she is the partner of her PM husband and should be accorded all the security available in her position. Would anyone suggest that Laura Bush pay for her own security? How much did it cost this country in security to finance the visit of any major head of state, including George W Bush's ? Salmon Rushdie, rightly in my opinion, received the full personal protection of this country in the aftermath of the call for his death from Muslim extremists, his only 'crime' was the writing of his book 'Satanic Verses' Dennis Thatcher, as the husband of Margaret, was always accompanied by security wherever he went. I would suggest that a public enquiry into the assassination of a family member of the Prime Minister would cost considerably more than the paltry sum being bandied about in the scurrilous right-wing press ( ie: The wrongful shooting of the July 7th suspected bomber)

Julie, Whether you are working at the moment or not you are a Tax payer we all pay taxes directly and indirectly where I am or UK. VAT which is on a vast amount of goods is an example for paying indirect tax. So whether you pay PAYE or just buy something in a local shop you are paying tax. I agree they should be jailed but many Councillors here were found guilty or accepting cash for land re-zoning they paid fines & the tax payers paid the Court fees of millions as well, just to add salt in the wounds. :-( Pat x

Tell me about it. Have to admit I'm not a taxpayer at the moment (attending college) but I can't help thinking that for crimes such as fraud they should be made to pay it all back plus court costs plus extra in compensation. As for security if they can afford it then they should pay for it, if they are no longer in government. PS sorry Len for hijacking thread a bit there

Oh thank you Julie. Where I live ex. Prime Ministers get Police Protection 24/7 including a PM found guilty of fraud and all sorts of goings on in the 1970's & 1980's, he wasn't jailed but was fined so he sold for millions some of his vast ranch and land where he lives to pay the fine. Us poor taxpayers pay for the protection of these people and their families. :-( Pat x

Lol Pat Yes she is entitled to it but on what she must earn surely she could have afforded her own bullet proof car. Juliexx *making sure Pat is not a thread killer :0)

LOL. agh the Perennial thread killer strikes again. Ah well. Pat x

Pamela well done, I totally agree with you ;-) Lynda also agree with you it is very sad people need such protection but that's the way it is nowadays. I really cannot see what Cherie Blair's looks have to do with anything. The woman is highly intelligent & has triumphed over adversity to become a Barrister, I have great respect for women like that wish other women had too. She is entitled to protection as the wife of the P.M. Pat x

You have to admit, all these sketch shows are good at taking the pee out of her. I'd certinatly miss that!

With a smile likes her's; everyone is gonna want to shoot her. I think the cars a good idea!!

I don't particularly like Cherie Blair, but I don't have any objection to her being protected. The cost of protection for the whole of the government, plus family and cronies, AND the royals, is still pretty much peanuts in monetary terms compared with the big gobblers of our tax!

Cherie Blair is a high profile Barrister who was earning more money than her husband prior to his election as PM in 1997. Of course she deserves the protection of this car as the wife of the PM. If the issue, siblings and distant relatives of our royalty are entitled to all the freebies and security they currently qualify for, why not Cherie? Has everyone forgotten the cost of Prince Andrew's bill for various helicopter rides to golf courses over the last few years, the cost to the nation of Prince Edward's training for the Royal Marines that he whimped out of? At least Cherie has attained her position as a Barrister and wife of the PM by dint of hard work and intellegence..............not by being born into a family of disfunctional royals who are slowly losing all respect of their 'subjects'

Noting surprises me about that lot any more. But I disagree that our money should be spent in that way. I think it's obscene, btw she has had this since the 9/11 bombings. It's not a new thing.

no i have to say im not too happy about it that money could be better spent else where,nspcc,red cross,oxfam,help the aged,etc,no not very happy at all,xx

You might not like Cherie Blair, that's O.K. but surely she is entitled to some protection as the wife of our Prime Minister. O.K. politicians do put themselves in the firing line, excuse the pun, but that doesn't make them fair game for every nutter on the planet.

I really don't care if tax-payers' money is spent on bullet-proof cars or not. What really makes me angry, is my money being spent on war and destruction.

Have the Bliars actually spent any of their own money on anything? Free holidays, free cars, suspect dealings on flats in Bristol. Why the car now? - they've been President and First Lady for some considerable time (far too long!) - is it to take with them when they eventually slope off to write their memoirs?