Terry Smith Straight Talking

New Zealand New Year Honours List

In the New Zealand New Year Honours List HM The Queen has graciously appointed me a Member of The New Zealand Order of Merit for services to New Zealand-United Kingdom relations.

I was honoured to receive this award which acknowledges the success of the Campaign I was proud to lead to commemorate New Zealander Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park, and I would like to thank all those who contributed to the success of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign.

I hope this award like the Campaign reminds people of just the sort of efforts that some people put in to defend the freedoms, rights and privileges that we enjoy today.

George Osborne - the enemy is behind you

Peter Oborne writing in the Daily Telegraph ahead of the Chancellor's Autumn statement made reference to my colleague Tim Morgan's 'brilliant, though truly terrifying paper' called Thinking the Unthinkable about the problems which the UK economy faces. His observation that the Chancellor's problem in pursuing the cuts which are essential lies less with the Labour opposition and Ed Balls' risible Plan B but with his Lib Dem coalition partners reminds me of a comment by Sir Winston Churchill:

A newly elected young Tory MP, eagerly taking up a place on the benches and pointing to the benches opposite, said to Churchill, “So that’s the enemy”.

Churchill replied, “No, that’s the opposition”, and then pointed to the benches behind and said, “That is the enemy”.

Happy Battle of Britain Day

The weather in London today is as it was on that day in 1940 when the greatest aerial battle in history reached its climax.
 
Last night I had the pleasure to attend a banquet at the RAF Museum to honour the Polish, Czech and Slovak pilots who flew as part of the RAF during the Battle.
 
The Poles were the second largest group of pilots in the RAF during the Battle after the Brits. The highest scoring ace in the battle in the RAF was a Czech Sgt. Josef Frantisek flying with 303 Polish Squadron.
 
This short clip from the movie Battle of Britain is an essentially accurate portrayal of the way the Polish squadron entered the Battle, by disobeying orders:
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1pplBZu0oU
 
As General Patton said in another context: 'It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.'
 
Thanks to them, enjoy your day.

Deja vu all over again?

Compare these two quotes which are about events 75 years apart but have a disturbingly similar ring to them. The only point I might make with Messrs Carn and Lascelles is about whether the individuals they describe were 'sour and discontented' or merely well informed.

“By the autumn of 2009, the financial world had become overwhelmed by a sense of having lived through something terrible – and of having survived it. Stock markets had rallied strongly, borrowing costs had come down and, crucially, bonuses were back. Even house prices in the UK and US had risen for a couple of months. The world economy, after the biggest fall since the 1930s, had stabilised and started to grow again. Unemployment was still rising, however, and most big economies were seeing falling consumer prices – something not seen in a generation. Amidst rebounding optimism the sour and discontented pointed to vast global imbalances and a future crisis in western government finances.”

Epilogue to “The Credit Crunch Diaries” by Nick Carn and David Lascelles November 2009.

“It all happened with a sort of surrealistic slowness so that it was quite possible to imagine that one had lived through it and survived it when in fact it had only just begun.”

Firsthand account of the onset of the 1930s depression.

Condolences on the Earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand

In my capacity as Chairman of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign I sent a letter of condolence to the people of Christchuch, New Zealand in the wake of the tragedy they have suffered as a result of the earthquake that hit yesterday. Many readers of my blog have been supporters of the campaign so I wanted to share my letter to His Excellency Mr Derek Leask, the High Commissioner for New Zealand in London:

Your Excellency,

In keeping with my close association with that great New Zealander, Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park, it is with great sadness that I write to you to express my own condolences and those of my colleagues at this most difficult and dark time for New Zealand.

The large casualty list and the extensive damage suffered by Christchurch and its people have profoundly shocked everyone here in the United Kingdom.

Earthquakes are often dramatic events, but to have one occur in the midst of a busy city in the middle of the day is doubly catastrophic.  To me one of the most dramatic pictures is of that symbol of faith and continuity, the 130 year old cathedral, minus its spire.

Many people here will have friends and relatives in New Zealand, which will make the tragedy even more poignant.  Yet in their hearts they know that the people of Christchurch and the authorities there will shoulder their tragic losses and remake and rebuild their city in the true manner of New Zealanders in adversity.

In that vein may I send my utmost support to the rescue teams, the fire fighters, the medical services, and indeed everyone else as they cope with the aftermath and the aftershocks.  I am glad to read too that a 62 man search and rescue team from this country is already on its way out there to assist where they can.

Your Excellency, I am once again deeply shocked and touched by another environmental tragedy in New Zealand.  It has been made worse by the fact that there was an earlier quake last September.  I would therefore be grateful if you would convey my condolences and heartfelt thoughts to the Prime Minister of New Zealand, the Mayor of Christchurch and the people of that city.

Yours sincerely,

Terry Smith
Chairman, the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign

Sir Keith Park Campaign recognised by New Zealander of the Year award

On Friday I had the honour of receiving the New Zealander of the Year award at a reception in London. The award was in recognition of the outstanding achievements of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign which I set up in 2007. You can view a TV new clip of the event here.

As readers of the blog and followers of the campaign will know, Sir Keith was the New Zealander who commanded 11 Group Fighter Command which defended London and the South East of England during World War Two; it was 11 Group that bore the brunt of the forthcoming Battle Of Britain. Park's handling of his fighters was impeccable and he won the Battle against the odds. However, as so often with unassuming men like Park, he lost the peace. After the Battle he and Dowding were cast aide as the result of political infighting and Park was consigned to Training Command. In a shameful episode, the official history of the Battle did not even mention him. However, Park was too good to languish for long and in July 1942 he was appointed to lead the air defence of Malta where he turned the tide of the battle and defeated the Luftwaffe once again.

Despite these achievements, there was no significant monument until I established the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign which was successful in temporarily erecting his statue on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square in 2009, and then on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain Day, 15th September 2010, a permanent statue of Park was unveiled in Waterloo Place in London.

Sir Keith Park will now forever gaze over the city he defended.

 

Statue unveiled to brains behind Battle of Britain

By Ross Lydall 

Appeared in the Evening Standard, 15 September 2010

The head of the RAF today praised the “quiet leader” who helped mastermind the Battle of Britain as a statue in his honour was unveiled.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton said Sir Keith Park’s legacy lived on in the fighter pilots who defend the country’s interests now.

The £500,000 9ft bronze statue of Sir Keith was revealed in a ceremony at Waterloo Place, off Pall Mall, on Battle of Britain Day. It also commemorates the 2,937 air crew from 14 countries who fought to defend Britain.

Prayers of thanksgiving were also due to be read in St Paul’s for the men and women who saved the cathedral during the Blitz. Sir Keith, a New Zealander who died in 1975, defied Luftwaffe air superiority as he commanded the RAF in London and the South-East.

Sir Stephen said Sir Keith showed the importance of “controlling the air” in order to win battles on the ground, adding: “Sir Keith Park was absolutely the brain behind the employment of the air defences we had in 1940. He was the thinking man that took theoretical possibility and turned it into operational reality.”

 The statue was unveiled three years to the day after a campaign was launched by businessman Terry Smith. Mr Smith, whose father was in the RAF, said: “The guy’s contribution was immense. He is a real unsung hero. He did more than any other man to win the Battle of Britain but he was overlooked. I wanted to correct that.”

A prototype of the statue appeared for six months on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. Sculptor Les Johnson said he wanted to reflect Sir Keith’s “understated” personality. “I didn’t want to give him a dynamic action pose,” he said. “He was very much a quiet leader.” 

 

Britain wasn't alone in her Finest Hour - we must remember the Commonwealth

The new statue of Sir Keith Park should remind
us of our links, and debt, to the Commonwealth,
says Terry Smith

Appeared in The Daily Telegraph, 30 October 2009

Next Wednesday, on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square, a statue will be unveiled of Sir Keith Park. His is a name familiar to few in this country. But in the early days of the Second World War, when the outlook for Britain was at its most grim, Park was one of a small group of senior commanders on whose shoulders the survival of the United Kingdom depended.

Throughout the Battle of Britain, Park commanded 11 Group of the Royal Air Force, responsible for the defence of London and the South East. His squadrons bore the brunt of the attacks on England by the Luftwaffe. Indeed, according to Lord Tedder, Marshal of the Royal Air Force: "If ever any one man won the Battle of Britain, he did. I don't believe it is recognised how much this one man... did to save not only this country, but the world."

Yet while the Battle of Britain was a turning point in the war, it was not a battle that Britain fought alone. Flying alongside 2,350 British pilots were some 600 pilots from 14 other countries – half of whom came from the Commonwealth and the rest from countries such as the United States, Poland and Czechoslovakia.

Park himself was a New Zealander, and throughout the campaign to have his efforts recognised, after 69 long years, I have become increasingly aware of the important part he and other citizens of the Commonwealth have played in the recent history of this country, and how closely we are still interlinked with its members both collectively and individually.

As with Park, there is little or no recognition today of the Commonwealth, and the value and opportunity it offers in a world that is increasingly globalised and increasingly insecure. Successive governments have focused foreign policy on the European Union and the United States – understandably in part, but also at the expense of our relationships elsewhere.

As we reflect on the recent anniversary of the beginning of the Second World War, and the story of Sir Keith Park, we should remember the sacrifices made on our behalf by citizens from the Commonwealth and other countries in our "Finest Hour". The scale of their contribution in the Second World War, and the debt we owe, is staggering. More than 4.5 million personnel from the Commonwealth served, of whom 360,000 were casualties.

India provided more than 2.5 million, the largest volunteer army in history, while Australia sent over 727,000, Canada 628,000, South Africa 342,000 and New Zealand 150,000. Other countries dispatched tens of thousands more. Nor should we forget the efforts of those who stayed at home, aiding the Allied war effort and keeping it supplied from afar. New Zealand even introduced rationing to ensure it could supply enough food for Britain.

Commonwealth forces have continued to fight alongside Britain and her allies. In the Korean War, New Zealand, Australia andCanada provided essential elements of the British Commonwealth Brigade, while their warships joined the British and American fleets.

Forces from New Zealand, Canada and Australia served in the Gulf war of 1990-91, and these three countries are today supporting the Nato-led force in Afghanistan. Commonwealth citizens are also increasingly prominent members of our own Armed Forces.

Recent crises have too often exposed the inadequacies of international organisations. Yet our Commonwealth allies have stood alongside us, without the need for new treaties, or new sound bites or flashy initiatives on military co-operation.

The body is, in fact, one of the greatest opportunities we enjoy: an association of 53 diverse countries across six continents, comprising almost 30 per cent of the world's population and responsible for 23 per cent of world trade volume. It has a shared heritage of accounting and legal standards, trading links and, of course, language. It brings together people of all faiths and ethnicities. Its director general is an Indian diplomat, Kamalesh Sharma, and it champions values we care about: democracy and consensus, peace, economic and human development, and the rule of law.

In Britain, we rarely read about this great institution. We may have a "Foreign and Commonwealth Office", and every four years watch the Commonwealth Games on television, but few of us know what the Commonwealth does, who belongs, and why it should be nurtured.

So next week, when we unveil the statue of Sir Keith, when our Armed Forces are still fighting alongside forces from Commonwealth countries, I hope some people will remember that we owe the Commonwealth more than just our gratitude for past sacrifices. We must do more to ensure that the bonds and friendships it embodies are maintained and strengthened in this dangerous world.

Terry Smith is chief executive of Tullett Prebon and chairman of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign.

 

© Telegraph Media Group Limited 2009