Archive for 'Hearings' Category
Prescott out of the loop
by Chris Ames
It is very much worth looking at the transcript of John Prescott’s appearance on Friday, as well as the headlines. This section is revealing but also shows what is wrong with the Inquiry:
BARONESS PRASHAR: Apart from the videolink conversation did you actually see any of the Prime Minister’s letters to the President?
RT. HON. [...]
The day of the Generals
by Chris Ames
The inquiry has posted the transcripts of today’s two witnesses, General Sir Richard Dannatt and General Sir Mike Jackson. Both were at some point head of the army.
I think the beginning of Dannatt’s evidence, in which he talked about the “contingency” planning for the invasion in the spring of 2002, is particularly interesting. [...]
Hans Blix at the Inquiry
I’ll be blogging this afternoon’s session with Hans Blix. But I won’t be attempting to cover it verbatim, given the coverage elsewhere, including Sky News covering it live. I’ll just be highlighting things that I think are important. Please feel free to do the same on the Comments function on the page for this blog.
The [...]
Yesterday’s hearings
by Chris Ames
I didn’t catch much of yesterday’s hearings, the transcripts of which have been posted here on the Digest and here on the Inquiry website. I did see quite a bit of Carolyn Miller, who was director for Europe, Middle East and the Americas at the Department for International Development, between 2001 and 2004.
According [...]
Helping Iraq wounded a “real challenge”
The Inquiry has now posted the transcript of this afternoon’s hearing with David Pocock, Peter Wilkinson and Mark Mans.
The BBC reports that:
Helping British troops seriously wounded in Iraq was a “real challenge” but welfare support has improved as a result, defence officials have said.
Improved battlefield care saved more lives but more soldiers were left [...]
Blix and Prescott next week
The Inquiry has now announced the times and dates of the remaining witnesses in this batch of hearings. Former chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix will appear on Tuesday 27 July and former deputy prime minister John Prescott on Friday 30 July.
Also appearing, on Wednesday morning and afternoon respectively, are two former chiefs of the [...]
No sympathy for Ingram
by Chris Ames
After his appearance at the Inquiry yesterday, former armed forces minister Adam Ingram has a pretty rough ride in the press. The Sun accuses him of having a “moan” over his comment that meeting the relatives of grieving families is “wearing” for ministers and the Daily Mail takes a similar line. Ingram was [...]
Cabinet not trusted with legal advice
The Inquiry has now published the transcript of Lord Boateng’s hearing this afternoon. Here are the sections in which he refers to the absence of full legal advice:
… it wasn’t actually until the Cabinet meeting in March, when it was clear that all other options had been exhausted and where we had the benefit of [...]
Cabinet ’should have seen’ full legal arguments on Iraq
The BBC is reporting that:
The cabinet should have seen all the arguments on the legality of the Iraq war, a former senior minister has said.
Lord Boateng said it would have been “helpful” to see then Attorney General Lord Goldsmith’s full legal deliberations in the run-up to war.
Military action would be lawful, Lord Goldsmith ruled days [...]
New paper published on costs of the aftermath
The Inquiry has published a newly declassified document from the Treasury on the costs of carrying out different functions in what was called Phase IV of the invasion, ie the period after the main fighting has stopped.
The paper is dated 5 March 2003 and the invasion is being planned for as a certainty. It was [...]