Iain
August 18, 2003, 06:53 PM
For anyone who is interested in following the Hutton inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of the MOD adviser David Kelly, here is the report from todays hearing:
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Tony Blair's most senior aide told intelligence chiefs their draft dossier failed to demonstrate "an imminent threat" from Iraq, the Hutton inquiry has heard.
The comment, in an e-mail from Downing Street chief of staff Jonathan Powell, was written just one week before the controversial dossier on Iraqi weapons was published on 24 September last year.
Mr Powell wrote that the dossier "does not demonstrate he (Saddam Hussein) has the motive to attack his neighbours, let alone the West".
The e-mail was sent to senior figures including chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee, John Scarlett, Mr Blair's communications chief Alastair Campbell and the then foreign affairs adviser Sir David Manning.
Other key points to emerge on the fifth day of Lord Hutton's inquiry into the death of government scientist Dr David Kelly were:
- Documents showed it had been decided by 5 September to restructure the dossier "as per TB's discussion" - an apparent reference to the prime minister
- A Downing Street spokesman described the row with the BBC over the Iraq dossier as a "game of chicken"
- Mr Powell said Number 10 had not considered the pressure that Dr Kelly would face after he was named
- The head of the Ministry of Defence press office said it was the ministry which made the decision to confirm Dr Kelly's name
- Sir David Manning said BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan's report "was seen as a pretty direct attack on the integrity of the prime minister".
In his 17 September e-mail Mr Powell said: "The dossier is good and convincing for those who are prepared to be convinced."
But he warned that it did "nothing to demonstrate a threat, let alone an imminent threat from Saddam". Mr Powell said that while it showed Saddam Hussein had the means to launch an attack, it did not demonstrate that he had a motive.
"We will need to make it clear in launching the document that we do not claim that we have evidence that he is an imminent threat," Mr Powell said.
Nowhere in the 24 September dossier does the word "imminent" appear.
But Mr Blair wrote in his foreward: "I am in no doubt that the threat is serious and current, that [Saddam] has made progress on WMD and that he has to be stopped."
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There is more here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3161719.stm
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Tony Blair's most senior aide told intelligence chiefs their draft dossier failed to demonstrate "an imminent threat" from Iraq, the Hutton inquiry has heard.
The comment, in an e-mail from Downing Street chief of staff Jonathan Powell, was written just one week before the controversial dossier on Iraqi weapons was published on 24 September last year.
Mr Powell wrote that the dossier "does not demonstrate he (Saddam Hussein) has the motive to attack his neighbours, let alone the West".
The e-mail was sent to senior figures including chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee, John Scarlett, Mr Blair's communications chief Alastair Campbell and the then foreign affairs adviser Sir David Manning.
Other key points to emerge on the fifth day of Lord Hutton's inquiry into the death of government scientist Dr David Kelly were:
- Documents showed it had been decided by 5 September to restructure the dossier "as per TB's discussion" - an apparent reference to the prime minister
- A Downing Street spokesman described the row with the BBC over the Iraq dossier as a "game of chicken"
- Mr Powell said Number 10 had not considered the pressure that Dr Kelly would face after he was named
- The head of the Ministry of Defence press office said it was the ministry which made the decision to confirm Dr Kelly's name
- Sir David Manning said BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan's report "was seen as a pretty direct attack on the integrity of the prime minister".
In his 17 September e-mail Mr Powell said: "The dossier is good and convincing for those who are prepared to be convinced."
But he warned that it did "nothing to demonstrate a threat, let alone an imminent threat from Saddam". Mr Powell said that while it showed Saddam Hussein had the means to launch an attack, it did not demonstrate that he had a motive.
"We will need to make it clear in launching the document that we do not claim that we have evidence that he is an imminent threat," Mr Powell said.
Nowhere in the 24 September dossier does the word "imminent" appear.
But Mr Blair wrote in his foreward: "I am in no doubt that the threat is serious and current, that [Saddam] has made progress on WMD and that he has to be stopped."
--------------------------------------
There is more here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3161719.stm