Extracts: Gordon Brown's phone call to Jacqui Janes

[David]

Guardian

Extracts: Gordon Brown's phone call to Jacqui Janes

Excerpts from the Sun's transcript of prime minister's conversation with mother of soldier killed in Afghanistan




guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 10 November 2009 11.20 GMT
Gordon Brown told Jacqui Janes he had 'the greatest of sympathy' for her.



Jacqui Janes: The letter that you wrote to me, Mr Brown ...

Gordon Brown: Yes ...

JJ: I don't want to sound disrespectful here, but it was an insult to my child. There was 25 spelling mistakes – 25.

GB: There wasn't ... I did write the letter because I was concerned about the death of your son, and I don't think what I said in it was disrespectful at all.

JJ: I never said it was disrespectful. The spelling mistakes are disrespectful ... the fact you named me Mrs James was disrespectful.

GB: I think I think I was trying to say Janes, as your right name. Maybe, maybe my writing looks bad, but I was trying to say your right name. And I spelt Jamie right, as I understand.

JJ: I beg to differ ... I cannot believe I have been brought down to the level of having an argument with the prime minister of my country.

GB: Please understand my good intentions, and I am very sorry you feel so strongly about the way I wrote the letter, but I hope that, on reflection, you'll understand that I have the greatest of sympathy for you and ...

JJ: I am not doubting that. I am not doubting the whole of the country has the greatest of sympathy for me. What I do know for a fact is that our soldiers out there– They should be out there by the way, I do truly believe that in my heart of hearts, the troops should be out there. We do need more troops out there, for a start, we do need the helicopters out there. That's a fact. I know for a fact of certain different pilots working out of Kandahar that on some occasions there is only one Casevac [casualty evacuation] helicopter available ...

GB: Well, OK, OK – I don't want to argue with you, because I want to actually pass on my condolences and I want to assure you that, although you've taken some offence against a letter I've written, I've tried to reflect my personal sadness at the loss of your son and I don't want to have any argument with you about it ...

JJ: Mr Brown, to this day, I know as fact helping my sons buy equipment themselves before they went to, to war. I know of every mother, the letters I have received off mothers ... in Iraq, in Afghanistan, you know, friends of mine that were killed in Northern Ireland. I know that our government is letting our troops down, big time.

GB: But I'm sorry. I would not send anybody abroad unless I felt that they were properly equipped and, er, what I have told the army chiefs [is] that we cannot send people abroad unless we can properly equip them ...


...


GB: I am sorry ... I don't think I did have spelling mistakes. My writing is maybe so badly [inaudible] that you can't read it and I'm sorry.

But I have tried to write honestly and honourably about the contributions your son made and ... [inaudible] can't be read. I know from colleagues James was a brave, selfless professional soldier held in the highest regard.

JJ: I don't need anyone to tell me how brave my son was. My son paid the ultimate, ultimate sacrifice.

GB: I'm sorry that I can't, I can't satisfy you, but I have tried my best to show you this evening that if there's been some misunderstanding about how my ...

JJ: I do appreciate your taking the time to phone me, but I'm afraid we are going to have to disagree ... I know every injury that my child sustained that day. I know that my son could have survived, but my son bled to death. How would you like it if one of your children, God forbid, went to a war doing something that he thought, where he was helping protect Queen and country and because of lack, lack of helicopters, lack of equipment, your child bled to death and then you had the coroner have to tell you his every injury? Do you understand, Mr Brown? Lack of equipment ...


...


JJ: Even army hierarchy are retiring and telling you what is going wrong and still you send 500 more troops, not the 2,000 needed ...

GB: Nobody was asking for 2,000 more troops.

JJ: Really?

GB: Yes. Nobody was asking for 2,000 troops. There are 9,000, 9,100, there at the moment, increasing to 9,500. The chiefs of staff are not asking for it to go up to 11,000 or 11,500. I have to tell you that honestly.

Whatever information you've been given, that is not correct. But I don't want to interact in a political debate about this ...