Pressure mounts for intelligence inquiry
The Government is under increasing pressure to hold an inquiry into the accuracy of intelligence used to justify war in Iraq.
Intelligence suggesting that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction has not yet been backed by evidence on the ground, and with calls for an investigation into the intelligence growing, the Government has suggested it will make an announcement soon.
No biological or chemical weapons have been retrieved since the invasion last year, and critics of the war have grown anxious over a shift towards highlighting WMD programmes.
Until recently the Government has maintained its view that the Iraq Survey Group should be allowed to report before an inquiry into intelligence is deemed necessary. However, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman acknowledged that questions may need to be answered.
On Thursday he commented that it would be “perfectly legitimate to ask about the existence of WMD”. However, he then insisted that the Iraq Survey Group should still be allowed to report before an inquiry. This is a position that some believe the Government is likely to reverse.
The Iraq Survey Group did note evidence of weapons of mass destruction programmes in Iraq when it issued its interim report. However, while this in itself may provide evidence that Saddam Hussein did not comply with UN resolution 1441, it has not satisfied opponents of the war or the opposition parties.
When Parliament was asked to vote for war, it was provided with intelligence information that suggested far more than development programmes. Some politicians believe that this intelligence must be looked into to assess whether Parliament was misled.
The Government position may have become harder to maintain since the announcement of a similar inquiry in the USA.
While the Liberal Democrats have been pressing for an inquiry into intelligence for some time, the Conservatives have now joined them. The Conservatives have shifted their focus since Lord Hutton’s backing of the Government in the Dr Kelly affair.
Tory leader Michael Howard has told the BBC that he still believes war was justified but that possible intelligence weaknesses must be looked into. He added: “I hope that he (the Prime Minister) will agree very speedily, within the next couple of days, to the holding of an inquiry of this kind.”
