Reid blames media for crisis over WMDs

Number 10 has mounted a fighting retreat over the issue of WMDs, as Labour enforcer John Reid was wheeled out today to blame both the media and "anonymous rogue elements" within the security services for raising question marks over the nature of Iraq's weapons.

Former Northern Ireland secretary John Reid, whose brusque, combative approach was effectively deployed to deter party rebels in the run up to the war last March, was scathing of reports "questioning the integrity" of security services.

However, Mr Blair has given ground saying that the matter will be investigated by the Intelligence and Security committee – although this committee does not publish a full report of its findings.

Liberal Democrat Shadow Foreign Secretary Menzies Campbell has called for an independent inquiry, claiming the Dr Reid's comments had muddied the waters still further.

Mr Campbell said: "Dr Reid’s intervention has raised the stakes. It is now clear that only a wholly independent inquiry will be sufficient to allay public anxieties.

"No matter how well intentioned any committee of the House of Commons may be, these matters now require completely impartial scrutiny."

The issue could have far-reaching implications for the government, the intelligence services and the way in which intelligence is collected.

So far former Cabinet ministers Clare short and Robin Cook have led the charge against the government – calling Mr Blair a "liar" and claiming that the country was "duped" into going to war.

Whilst demurring from a point blank demand for a public inquiry, Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith has demanded an urgent statement from Tony Blair – saying the credibility of the prime minister, the government and the intelligence services could all be compromised if there are not some clear answers.

Mr Duncan Smith said that the government must answer key questions on allegations that: Mr Blair personally interfered with the WMD dossier published last September; that Saddam's WMD could be ready for use within 45 minutes; and that there was no disagreement between 10 Downing Street and the Intelligence Service.

In a letter to Mr Blair, the Conservative leader also urged Number 10 to immediately publish new evidence which he has said will reinforce his earlier claims about Iraq's WMD.

The catalyst for the present political and popular unease over the state of Iraq's WMD programme came in the unlikely form of US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld – who earlier this month suggested that Saddam Hussein may have destroyed his illegal arms prior to war commencing.

As the clear threat posed by Iraq's WMDs was the overriding reason for Britain's move to war, the Mr Rumsfeld's statement left Tony Blair critically exposed.

Shortly after war ended Tony Blair told the Sun newspaper that he feared that he would lose the premiership over the Iraq crisis. But whilst Mr Blair continues to enjoy widespread support among MPs, no trace of Saddam Hussein's WMDs has been uncovered and this latest row - two months after war's end - indicates that the Iraq crisis is not yet over.

(GMcG)