Labour MPS confront Blair over Iraq report

11.15am - By COLIN BROWN


Tony Blair was last night confronted by angry Labour MPs over the report by the Iraqi Survey Group which showed that Saddam had no weapons of mass destruction.

The Prime Minister faced the wrath of anti-war Labour MPs at a private meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party behind closed doors at the Commons.

He failed to answer criticism by Dennis Skinner, the Labour MP for Bolsover, over reports that Whitehall officials who may have worked on the dossiers that led Britain to war could get honours.

Paul Flynn, another Labour MP, directly asked Mr Blair to apologise for taking Britain to war on a false premise.

Mr Blair refused to repeat the apology uttered last week by Patricia Hewitt, the Trade and Industry Secretary.

"He said he did not regret the decision to go to war to bring down Saddam Hussein," said a Labour official, who was there.

"He said it was the right decision."

It was the first opportunity for the MPs to tackle the Prime Minister about the findings of the report since its publication last week and the murder of Kenneth Bigley, the British hostage, who was beheaded by his captors.

Half of the 16 questions raised were about Iraq, but hostile MPs were shouted down by loyalists.

One minister said: "When someone claimed that it was the main issue on the doorstep, people groaned out loud."

The MPs later criticised Mr Blair for refusing to make a statement to the Commons yesterday and some are demanding a fresh two-day debate on Iraq in the Commons.

Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, will seek to quell their protests by making a Commons statement today. He will highlight the corruption among French and Russian nationals identified in the report for taking oil from Saddam that was intended for the UN oil-for-food programme.

Senior ministers said the protests were restricted to a handful of the 'usual suspects' and that the vast majority of Labour MPs backed Mr Blair.

Mr Blair brushed aside their demands for a fresh Commons debate, and scotched reports that he is ready to call a snap November election to 'cut and run' before the violence in Iraq escalates.

His senior aides said the rumours of a pre-Christmas election were being put about by anti-war Labour MPs intent on ousting Mr Blair before the general election.

One cabinet minister said: "We are not ready for a November election. We have no need to rush into the election."

Ministers said it was one of the most impressive performances by Mr Blair, who showed no signs of his recent heart illness, nor of his readiness to give up his post, in spite of announcing that he will go after a third term.

Mr Blair sought to focus the PLP on his domestic agenda, telling MPs that the Tories at their conference in Bournemouth last week had 'lurched to the right'.

He said the speech by Michael Howard, the Tory leader, had revealed that the Tories were going to target their election campaign at the core Tory vote.

- INDEPENDENT

Herald Feature: Iraq