Hoon hints at resignation after Hutton

With the row over the death of Sergeant Steve Roberts during the war in Iraq refusing to subside, Mr Hoon said he had to consider the question of resignation.

"I accept that there is an issue, but I am content to await the outcome of the various investigations, not least the Hutton Report, and obviously to make decisions in the light of whatever is said," he said.

Although Downing Street continued to insist that Mr Hoon had the backing of the Prime Minister, there was no respite for Mr Hoon in the face of demands for his resignation over the death of Sgt Roberts, who was shot after he had been told to hand back his body armour because there was not enough to go around.

Yesterday Sgt Roberts’ widow Samantha said: "He does have blood on his hands, certainly. Steve’s blood."

Yesterday it emerged that the Ministry of Defence had not originally considered issuing combat troops with enhanced body armour before sending them into battle.

The Scotsman has learnt that the decision to issue the body armour to British troops in Iraq was taken at the very last minute, by which time it was too late to ensure that the equipment would reach the troops.

According to the National Audit Office, which carried out a review of Operation Telic (the military campaign in Iraq), the MoD had previously only considered issuing enhanced body armour for peacekeeping operations.

Mark Strathdeane, a spokesman for NAO, said: "Until quite soon before Iraq, the MoD didn’t envisage using body armour for a large-scale military operation. It was intended for things like Northern Ireland. We uncovered it when we were talking to people in the MoD looking through the documents."

Until yesterday, Mr Hoon had appeared adamant that he would not resign.

But pressure has been mounting on him since Mrs Roberts released her husband’s audio diary in which he described his worries about being sent into battle without proper equipment and body armour - a situation he described as "a joke".

Yesterday Mr Hoon expressed regret about the circumstances that led to Sgt Roberts’ death.

"I am extremely sorry that Sgt Roberts did not have the enhanced body armour which we expected that he would receive," he said.

And Mr Hoon acknowledged that the publication of the Hutton report into the death of government weapons expert Dr David Kelly on 28 January would place him under further pressure.

"I accept that there are always difficulties faced by all politicians, not least in the position that I have held for more than four years. I am always aware of those pressures," he said.Politics, Page 15 Editorial comment, Page 19