William Hague and the burden of history.

William Hague is a first rate historian. His biographies on William Pitt the younger, and William Wilberforce have been critically acclaimed. His wife Ffion is also an excellent historian; her work on 'Lloyd George's Women' was outstanding. William Hague may have begun his career as the 'Tory-boy' of the Thatcher years, but since then he has accumulated vast political experience as leader of the Conservative Party and latterly as Foreign Secretary. To be sure, he has the intellectual and political experience to serve as Foreign Secretary. So why has it gone wrong?

Two recent 'blunders 'in Libya highlight William Hague's plight. The farcical capture of the special unit of soldiers and the 'diplomats' by the rebel forces would be comical if it were not so serious. The hapless response from the Foreign Office suggests they were not in control of events. However, even more damaging was William Hague's public announcement that Gaddafi had left Libya and was on his way to Venezuela. Such is the power of satellite television that Hague's announcement was soon being celebrated by the Libyans.

Of course William Hague was making a dangerous blunder. I have been trying to work out why Hague needed to make the announcement at that point; what on earth was he thinking about? Was the insatiable power of the 24/7 media and Hague wishing to be the bringer of good news? Or was it another in the line of Weapons of Mass Destruction pieces of British intelligence and that Hague was not properly briefed? Why did Hague need to say anything at all? What could he or Britain possibly gain? Whatever the answer, William Hague and the Government have been damaged by this affair.

William Hague the historian carefully checks the reliability of the sources he uses to build up a complete biography of his chosen subjects. He must learn to apply the same skills to his political role.