[HPforGrownups] Sirius, Fudge, and the PM

[manawydan]

No: HPFGUIDX 57608

Darrin wrote:
>
> I think it's more explicit than that. Page 33, PoA UK.
>
> "I have the Prime Minister's assurance that he will not breathe a
> word of Black's true identity to anyone. And let's face it- who'd
> believe him if he did?" -- Fudge.
>
> That indicates a personal conversation between Fudge and the P.M.
> That further indicates the P.M. knows EXACTLY what Black is, and if
> there is a conversation between Fudge and the P.M., then I think it's
> not a bad assumption that channels have been opened in the past.

I think there's another interpretation which can be put on it, one which
would in my view be safer for the WW than trusting _anything_ to the Prime
Minsters of muggledom (thinking about the last half dozen, I can't think of
one who would have been trustworthy to keep the big secret, even if they had
believed it in the first place!)

Fudge is a self-aggrandising, pompous little sod and I'm sure he would have
said "The PM has assured me personally" rather than "I have the PM's
assurance" if there had been a direct conversation. Also we don't know what
the PM believes "Black's true identity" to be (a terrorist, perhaps).

My own little theory (apologies for repeating it, 'cos I've told it once
fairly recently already) goes like this: in the Cabinet Office is a person
from the MoM. They are officially on secondment from another department (so
no one ever bothers about their pay and conditions). No one knows exactly
what they are doing there (any conversation about them immediately goes off
onto another topic) and indeed it's very rare for anyone to notice they are
there at all.

What they are actually doing is spying on the muggles to make sure that the
MoM can counter anything which might put the WW in jeopardy - a new
observation satellite which might need to be enspelled, a planning
application to knock down Diagon Alley, proposed military manoeuvres through
the middle of Hogsmeade, etc, etc - and advise the MoM that counter measures
are necessary.

But also to pass on any messages. Prime Ministers come and go, but
bureaucrats are always there. When Sirius escaped, my feeling is that the PM
was given a warning that a dangerous international terrorist was on the
loose in the UK and that all measures should be taken to track him down
without alarming the public: for publicity purposes he should be described
as an escaped murderer.

Cheers

Ffred

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