John Baron MP: Chilcot Report – did No 10 intentionally deceive?

MP hopes Report will address WMD claims

Ahead of the publication on Wednesday of the long-awaited report of the Iraq Enquiry, chaired by Sir John Chilcot, John Baron MP hopes that it will address the issue of whether the Blair Government intentionally misled the country when making the case for war. John resigned from the Shadow Front Bench in order to vote against the war, and was afterwards interviewed by Sir John Chilcot as part of his enquiries into the role of ‘spin doctors’ within the Coalition Information Centre (CIC) inside the FCO in the lead-up to the war.

John said,

“It is well accepted that the Blair Government took the country to war in Iraq on a false premise – there were no weapons of mass destruction. However, for me the central issue remains whether No 10 deliberately misled Parliament and the country. I hope the Iraq Enquiry addresses this issue.”

“Having met Sir John on several occasions during the enquiry, I know he has been looking at this crucial area and the extent to which ‘spin doctors’ working within the system and the CIC made the case for war. I look forward to reading his conclusions – war should always be the measure of last resort.”

“The report should also address a number of other failures, including the woeful lack of post-war planning which led to the total breakdown of the country and ushered in a vicious civil war – the consequences of which we are still dealing with today.”