MoD news director defends Kelly naming policy

Thursday, 18 September 2003 12:00 AM

The director of news at the Ministry of Defence, Pam Teare, has defended the department's treatment of the late Iraq arms expert Dr David Kelly.

Appearing before the Hutton Inquiry into events leading up to Dr Kelly's apparent suicide, Ms Teare was submitted to tough questioning by the Kelly family's barrister Jeremy Gompertz QC.

Mr Gompertz QC asked Ms Teare why it had taken two hours for the MoD to tell Dr Kelly his name had been confirmed.

She claimed that the press office did not have a welfare role and added that the Ministry of Defence scientist had been warned to consider staying with friends because of the media frenzy the disclosure of his identity might cause.

Asked about a question and answer sheet handed out to journalists about Dr Kelly, Ms Teare explained that the different drafts of the document had been a result of attempts to find the "fairest" way of dealing with a difficult situation.

She added that the top MoD civil servant Sir Kevin Tebbit had authorised the Q&A.

Ms Teare denied that the decision to confirm Dr Kelly's identity if his name was put to the press office had produced a "guessing game" and insisted that it was something created by journalists.

Dr Kelly became embroiled in a row between the BBC and the Governemnt following conversations he held with BBC defence correspondent Andrew Gilligan. The interviews with Mr Gilligan were used as the basis for a series of reports, in which the journalist alleged weapons intelligence had been doctored in order to "sex up" the September dossier on Iraq arms.

Edward Wilding, director of Data Genetics Ltd, and Professor A J Sammes of the Centre for Forensic Computing at Cranfield University are also appearing before the inquiry panel.

The two forensic experts examined Mr Gilligan's personal organiser in which he recorded his meeting with Dr Kelly.

Mr Gilligan also faces further cross-examination on Wednesday.

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