Tuesday 12 August 2003

MoD Officials Slam Dossier Spin

Next contestant: Piers Morgan from the Daily Mirror
Special subject: THE BLEEDING OBVIOUS!


Three Ministry of Defence intelligence officials complained about the spin in Tony Blair's Iraq war dossier, a probe heard yesterday.

They were worried about the language and "level of certainty" in the dossier's spy claim that Iraq could deploy weapons of mass destruction within 45 minutes.

An official document which noted their concerns declared: "The personnel did not share its judgment."

Disturbingly, it was revealed that the 45-minute allegation WAS added later to the dossier, as claimed by critics.

The inquiry also heard that Dr David Kelly, dismissed as a Walter Mitty fantasist by a No10 spokesman, was in fact Whitehall's leading expert on Iraqi weapons programmes and one of the world's most respected microbiologists.

Lord Hutton is heading the inquiry into how Dr Kelly, 59, came to commit suicide after being named as the possible source of a BBC story that No 10 "sexed up" intelligence to strengthen the case for war on Saddam Hussein.

Full story...