| Tony Blair will on Wednesday seek to win some breathing space in the bitter row over Iraq's weapons of mass destruction by promising full co-operation with a parliamentary inquiry into the intelligence used to make the case for war.
The prime minister is expected to face a sustained onslaught from all sides of the House when he makes his first Commons appearance since Downing Street was first accused of exaggerating intelligence claims about Saddam Hussein's weapons programme.
Under growing pressure from political opponents, Mr Blair will use prime minister's questions to announce that he has agreed to an inquiry into the issue by the intelligence and security committee (ISC) of senior parliamentarians. The committee, whose hearings are held in private and whose reports are often censored, oversees MI6, MI5 and GCHQ. It has access to sensitive material and senior intelligence officials, and can call ministers to account.
However, Downing Street's hopes that this concession would defuse the row were dealt a blow on Tuesday night when the foreign affairs committee said it would launch a separate inquiry that will hear evidence in public.
Mr Blair's co-operation with the ISC is unlikely to go far enough to appease backbench Labour rebels - including former ministers Clare Short and Robin Cook - and the Liberal Democrats, who are demanding a fully independent inquiry into the government's claim that Iraq possessed WMD that could be deployed within 45 minutes.
The ISC, a cross-party group of nine MPs chaired by Labour's Ann Taylor, will examine allegations that officials at Number 10 "sexed up" intelligence information to strengthen the case for military action. It could also look at the wider question of how the intelligence compared with the reality on the ground in Iraq.
Nearly two months after Mr Hussein was toppled, the failure to find the weapons has led to pressure on the government to disclose fully the intelligence used to support its decision to overthrow the Iraqi regime.
Mr Blair is resisting these demands. His decision, though, is designed to pre-empt attacks from Labour backbenchers and disgruntled former ministers, who plan to use Wednesday's Commons debate on Iraq to interrogate the government on what it knew. Jack Straw, foreign secretary, cut short a trip to Madrid on Tuesday evening to lead the government's response.
Downing Street on Tuesday repeated its denials that it meddled with intelligence and insisted there was no need for an independent inquiry.
The Lib Dems have canvassed Labour MPs to get cross-party backing for their resolution. More than 50 Labour MPs have signed a Commons motion demanding publication of the full government evidence on Iraqi weapons. Other Labour backbenchers said it was premature to draw conclusions and would not side with the opposition.
Iain Duncan Smith, who as Conservative leader supported the Iraq conflict, stopped short of calling for an independent inquiry.
But, in a letter to the prime minister on Tuesday night, he urged Mr Blair to answer comprehensively the allegations.
Source: Financial Times | |
