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| BBC's Radio 1 rapped for BNP's Ashley Cole interview BBC Radio 1 has been criticised by the corporation's complaints unit for an interview with senior BNP members, who said footballer Ashley Cole was ''not ethnically British''. telegraph.co.uk |
Lawyer fell for the charms of confidence trickster As a leading lawyer in the field of dispute resolution Moira Karsten was used to advising people on how to deal with difficult situations. telegraph.co.uk |
Alex Salmond accused of grandstanding in the Maldives Alex Salmond has been accused of grandstanding overseas after it emerged he is planning a 'fact-finding' trip to a tropical island paradise. telegraph.co.uk |
Anthropologist paid £30,000 to study airport Tom Hanks once made a film about a man who lived in an airport, while out-of-luck Irish chef Gareth Delaney did it for real at Gatwick. telegraph.co.uk |
Iraq inquiry hears lack of vital equipment hurt British army operations Former defence chiefs John Hutton and Des Browne criticise MoD procurement while giving evidence at Chilcot inquiryConcerns were expressed about a Âshortage of helicopters for British troops even before the government expanded operations in Afghanistan, the Chilcot inquiry into the invasion of Iraq was told today.The inquiry heard evidence from former defence secretary Des Browne and his successor, John Hutton, who described delays in providing the army with a new armoured vehicle as a "procurement shambles".Before testimony from Sir Michael Wood, former chief legal adviser at the Foreign Office, and his deputy, Elizabeth Wilmshurst, both of whom advised that an invasion would be unlawful without a new UN resolution, Gordon Brown defended the actions of the Blair government."I think the mistake in the war was not to do the reconstruction and plan it in the way that was necessary so that Iraq could recover quickly after Saddam Hussein fell," he told a press conference."As far as the war is concerned, I have always said that the UN resolution that said to Saddam Hussein for over 10 years that he had to take action to deal with the threat he was posing to other countries was a very decisive part of the reasons why we had to take the actions we did."That view was not shared by Wood and Wilmshurst, who resigned in protest against the invasion, nor until shortly before the invasion was it shared by Lord Goldsmith, the attorney general, the Iraq inquiry will hear this week.Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, will say tomorrow that his party would amend the Official Secrets Act to protect officials speaking out in the public interest.He will tell the Institute for ÂGovernment: "The Chilcot inquiry is a powerful reminder of the ambiguity that can surround the role of officials and the ease with which they can be dictated to by politicians."He will add: "Where there is clear need to speak out in the public interest – as with the dubious legality of the war in Iraq – officials must know they can do so free from the fear of prosecution."Browne, defence secretary from May 2006 to October 2008, told the inquiry today that being able to move troops by air became ever more important as the nature of the threat changed "dramatically". However, he said he did not "necessarily" accept that the shortage of helicopters led to greater use of lightly armoured Snatch Land Rovers.Hutton also said the lack of helicopters affected British operations in Iraq: "The issue of helicopters undoubtedly was a factor in the campaign, and I don't think there's any point pretending otherwise."He sharply criticised the delayed Future Rapid Effect System project, designed to provide new armoured vehicles. "I think it's hard to imagine a worse procurement shambles," he said."That, I think, is a pretty grim episode and in my view makes the case for a very urgent shake-upof the equipment procurement function of the MoD absolutely essential … Ten years into it, we still haven't got a single vehicle."Iraq war inquiryIraqMilitaryDes BrowneGordon BrownAfghanistanNick CleggJohn HuttonRichard Norton-TaylorAllegra Strattonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |