Infamous WMD report to be made public

Published on 23/01/2008 21:19

AN EARLY draft of the government's infamous dossier on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction must be made public, the Information Tribunal said yesterday.

The publication of the document by John Williams, Foreign Office press chief, will resolve whether Whitehall spin doctors inserted the claim WMDs could be deployed by Saddam Hussein in 45 minutes to "sex up" the dossier in 2002.

The Information Tribunal rejected an appeal by the government claiming releasing the document would "not be in the public interest".

Dr David Kelly, a weapons expert, was found dead shortly after being named as the source of a BBC report suggesting that the dossier, used to support an invasion of Iraq, was "sexed up".

A dispute between the BBC and Downing Street led to Dr Kelly's death.