UK PM denies secret deal to free Lockerbie bomber

LONDON - Gordon Brown came close to endorsing the Scottish Government's decision to free the Lockerbie bomber yesterday as he attempted to put an end to the controversy over the release.

After days of refusing to say whether he supported the return of Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi to Libya, the British PM broke his silence to insist there had been no secret deal with Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's Government.

He was forced to speak out after it emerged that Libya had been reassured in February that the PM did not want to see Megrahi, who has terminal prostate cancer, die on British soil.

The Conservatives demanded an explanation after it emerged Brown had written a personal letter to Gaddafi.

Brown said he respected both Edinburgh's right to release Megrahi on compassionate grounds and the decision itself.

His comments were seized upon by Alex Salmond, the Scottish First Minister, as evidence of Downing St's support for his administration's controversial move to free Megrahi. Salmond also faced embarrassment yesterday when his minority Scottish National Party Administration lost a series of votes in the Holyrood Parliament over its handling of the affair.

Brown said the final decision to release the bomber had been taken by the Scottish Government.

Denying the release was intended to smooth trade and oil deals with the North African state, he said: "There was never a linkage between any other issue and the Scottish Government's decision about Megrahi's future."

He added: "I respect the right of Scottish ministers to make the decision, and the decision. But on our part there was no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double-dealing, no deal on oil, no attempt to instruct Scottish ministers, no private assurances by me to Colonel Gaddafi."

- INDEPENDENT