Des Browne, the former Scottish Secretary, found himself at the centre of an embarrassing diplomatic spat last night after the Sri Lankan Government flatly rejected his appointment as Gordon Brown�s Special Envoy.
Des Browne, the former Scottish Secretary, found himself at the centre of an embarrassing diplomatic spat last night after the Sri Lankan Government flatly rejected his appointment as Gordon Brown's Special Envoy to its country, claiming the move smacked of imperialism from its old colonial master.
The Tories branded the UK Government's move "incompetent".
On Thursday, Gordon Brown unexpectedly announced the appointment of his former cabinet colleague, who resigned from his positions as Defence and Scottish Secretary in the October reshuffle, to help oversee the end of the civil war with Tamil Tiger separatists.
The Prime Minister explained that in his new role Mr Browne would "focus on the immediate humanitarian situation in northern Sri Lanka and the government of Sri Lanka's work to set out a political solution to bring about a lasting end to the conflict".
He added that, as Special Envoy, the 56-year-old MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun would work closely with the Sri Lankan Government, leaders from all the local communities, international agencies and the wider international community.
In response, Mr Browne welcomed his new role and said he was "looking forward to contributing to UK efforts to improve the serious humanitarian situation and liaising with all parties that may have a role to play in taking forward work on a sustainable political solution".
However, yesterday the Sri Lankan Government responded angrily to the Scot's appointment, claiming it was a unilateral "disrepectful intrusion" into its country's internal affairs made without proper prior consultation.
"There should be approval from both countries and there is no need for that type of an appointment. It's quite unnecessary," declared Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, the Media Minister and spokesman for the Sri Lankan cabinet.
He revealed it had voiced its "displeasure" to the British High Commission in Colombo and added: "We are not a British colony any more. We are quite capable of looking after the internally displaced persons."
A further statement from the Foreign Ministry said Mr Browne's appointment was tantamount to an "intrusion of Sri Lanka's internal affairs". It added: "The cabinet perceived that this would be a hindrance in pursuing a sustainable solution to the conflict in terms of a Sri Lankan agenda."
Rohitha Bogollagama, the country's Foreign Minister, appeared incensed. He said Mr Browne's appointment was "extremely unhelpful" and warned of "major repercussions" for relations with Britain. He added: "There is no further discussion with London on the matter."
When news of the spat broke, the Foreign Office would only say there were "on-going discussions" with the Sri Lankan authorities.
Later, a spokeswoman revealed David Miliband had spoken to Mr Bogollagama and "explained the reasons the United Kingdom was proposing a special envoy".
She added: "This was not a unilateral decision. The Foreign Secretary will continue the consultations started by the Prime Minister's letter of January 20 to President Rajapakse in a further conversation with Foreign Minister Bogollagama on Monday."
When it was suggested to the spokeswoman that perhaps the Sri Lankans felt the appointment of Mr Browne had not been fully agreed to and was being foisted on them, she told The Herald: "Discussions are on-going."
Last night, the Conservatives attacked a "further example of the extraordinary incompetence of Gordon Brown's government, which turns out to be global in scale".
Liam Fox, the Shadow Defence Secretary, said the PM was managing to make a "complete mess" of the UK's relations with a friendly overseas country.
