"SELF DETERMINATION IS KEY TO THE WORLD PEACE"
Fox’s Friend Breaks Silence To Admit ‘Naivety’
[Wednesday, 14 December 2011 15:56] Featured, General, NewsFox’s Friend Breaks Silence To Admit ‘Naivety’
This picture of Liam Fox and Adam Werritty shows them in Sri Lanka. Picture: The Sunday Leader
11:53am UK, Wednesday December 14, 2011
Adam Werritty, the self-styled adviser to Liam Fox before his resignation from Cabinet, has broken his silence to admit he was "naive" and "knows very little about defence policy".
Dr Fox quit as defence secretary when it emerged his close friend used business cards claiming to be an official Ministry of Defence adviser and had accompanied him on a significant number of foreign trips.
In an article written for Spectator magazine, Mr Werritty acknowledged he made mistakes and said he is now "planning a future well away from politics".
"Much of what was written and reported was long on drama and innuendo, but short on details and specifics," he said of the media storm earlier this year.
"What had this ‘villainous’ Adam Werritty actually done?
I’ve been asked on several occasions why I didn’t apply to be a special adviser. The answer: I actually know very little about defence policy.
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Adam Werritty in the Spectator
"I know and accept that I made mistakes, some of which were sufficiently serious to have played their part in Liam’s resignation as defence secretary. As a close friend of his, I found this particularly hard.
"I was certainly naive not to have better considered how my role, and regular contact with Liam, would look from the outside," he added.
He said he is still friends with the Conservative MP and plans to spend Hogmanay with Dr Fox and his wife Jesme Baird.
"There are some things that even storms in a Sri Lankan teacup don’t change," he explained.
Mr Werritty says he worked with Dr Fox to support his efforts to secure reconciliation in Sri Lanka and helped remove long-standing emergency regulations there.
He claims that far from posing as an MoD adviser, he never meant to suggest he was an expert in defence.
"I’ve been asked on several occasions why I didn’t apply to be a special adviser," he wrote.
Timeline: Fox’s Fall 
The events that led up to Liam Fox quitting as Defence Secretary.
"The answer: I actually know very little about defence policy and have never pretended otherwise. Why should I be paid by the taxpayer for an expertise I didn’t possess?
"So I continued to work outside of ‘officialdom’ in what was certainly an unusual role. I was funded by a number of donors and my job was to research and network. To meet various experts, attend forums and conferences and get a solid understanding of various foreign affairs issues."
Mr Werritty, best man at Dr Fox’s wedding, said he regretted setting up a coffee meeting between the-then defence secretary and businessman Harvey Boulter in Dubai.
It was this unofficial meeting that helped unravel Dr Fox’s ministerial career.
A report by Cabinet Secretary Sir Gus O’Donnell found the Conservative politician’s friendship with Mr Werritty broke the ministerial code and allowed a potential conflict of interest to arise.
The Spectator says Mr Werritty asked that his fee for the article be donated to the charity Help For Heroes.
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Posted by: BruceR from Edinburgh on December 14, 2011 3:32 PM
I don’t think there’s very much ‘naive’ about him. He says, ‘I was funded by a number of donors and my job was to research and network.’ What? That statement alone should have him in an MI5 back room with a spotlight on his face.
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Posted by: pascoe on December 14, 2011 3:31 PM
I think naive is the wrong description for any Politician,it is there arrogance and ego,s that cause us the problem.We unfortunately entrust our daily lives and futures to a bunch of failed individuals ,whose only skill for becoming a politician is the ability to talk.We should be setting minimum requirements as we would in all other managerial roles and get rid of this incompetent lot of all sides of the house
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Posted by: neilly from Scotland on December 14, 2011 2:45 PM
Yes he was very "naive" to think that when Liam Fox was a Health Minister he should run a Health Consultancy and when Liam Fox moved to Defence he should start a "Defence Consultancy " and nobody would notice .
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Posted by: MaxB88 from London on December 14, 2011 2:30 PM
Sweet jesus these two are SO unbelievably creepy!
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Posted by: allinthemind from watford,hertfordshire on December 14, 2011 1:26 PM
@Watchdog – I think she knew all along – just turned a blind eye. Easier that way.
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Posted by: Mike69 on December 14, 2011 1:22 PM
Ignorance is not an excuse… He knew how to cash the cheques and make a fortune illegally. Lucky not to be in jail..
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Posted by: Very Bemused from Kent on December 14, 2011 1:15 PM
I’d have thought he was very clever for not getting caught for such a long time.
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Posted by: digitalnonsense2010 on December 14, 2011 1:01 PM
@ watchdog – I agree.
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Posted by: Watchdog on December 14, 2011 12:47 PM
It is Fox’s wife who is naive. It is obvious the two men are lovers.
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Global Peace Support Group UK Ltd is a registered organisation based in London. The organisation dedicated to be involved in humanitarian and other related issues. We also work along with other similar organisations to promote peace and harmony among various societies..
GLOBAL PEACE SUPPORT GROUP - UK - TIRELESSLY WORK ON THE CONCEPT OF:
"SELF DETERMINATION IS KEY TO THE WORLD PEACE"
MOURNS ON THE CONTINUED TRAGEDY OF THE PEOPLE OF North & East of Tamil EELAM WITH THE HOPE OF ALL OF OUR ENDEAVOURS WOULD BRING AN END TO THOSE SUFFERING DURING THE YEAR AHEAD.
The International community has a duty towards the long suffering Sri Lankan Tamil population to restore their rights of SELF DETERMINATION.
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