Vulnerable Hoon accused of cynical abuse of power

By ANDREW GRICE

Geoff Hoon, the Secretary of State for Defence, was described as a liar and a hypocrite by the lawyer for the family of David Kelly yesterday as the Hutton inquiry heard its closing statements.

Jeremy Gompertz QC accused the Government of treating the weapons expert as a "pawn" in its bitter dispute with the BBC over the allegation that Downing Street "sexed up" a dossier on Iraqi weapons.

He said Mr Hoon had been an "enthusiastic supporter" of naming Dr Kelly as the BBC's source and accused him of a "cynical abuse of power" in the MoD's treatment of him in the days leading up to his death.

Lawyers representing the Government, the BBC and Dr Kelly's family yesterday sought to apportion blame for the scientist's death.

After a brief final session next Tuesday, Lord Hutton will retire to write his report, which he expects to publish by December.

Yesterday's submissions left Mr Hoon looking more vulnerable than ever. Observers believe he will be forced to resign unless Lord Hutton acquits him of the charges levelled at him.

Although Mr Blair will be anxiously awaiting the Law Lord's findings, his position looks more secure after he escaped personal criticism. Lord Hutton may spread blame widely and Dr Kelly may not be immune from criticism for his unauthorised meeting with the BBC journalist Andrew Gilligan.

Mr Gompertz said it was not the Kelly family's aim to seek "revenge or individual scapegoats". But they wanted lessons to be learnt and to expose the "duplicity" of the Government and the "systematic failures" of the Ministry of Defence in its handling of Dr Kelly.

He dismissed as "risible" a claim by Richard Hatfield, the MoD's personnel director, that the scientist had been given "outstanding" support and accused him of trying to portray Dr Kelly as the "author of his own misfortune".

Mr Gompertz said: "The Government and the nation have lost their greatest expert in biological weapons of mass destruction, yet he was characterised by his employers to suit their needs of the hour as a middle-ranking official and used as a pawn in their political battle with the BBC."

Mr Hoon's denials that he had been involved in a strategy to publicly name Dr Kelly as the BBC's source had been exposed as "hypocrisy" by the diary entries of Alastair Campbell, the Downing Street director of communications.

"They indicate with clarity, if accepted by the inquiry, that the Secretary of State's denials of the Government's strategy, put to him in cross-examination, were false," Mr Gompertz said.

Andrew Caldecott QC, for the BBC, acknowledged mistakes in its reporting, but accused Mr Hoon of "cynical indifference" in his failure to correct press reports suggesting Iraq could deploy longer range weapons within 45 minutes when it related only to battlefield weapons.

"It is hard to put it down to anything other than political expedience," he said. Jonathan Sumption QC, counsel for the Government, insisted that Dr Kelly had no right to anonymity. He warned against "a hunt for other people to blame" for his death.

Mr Gilligan was also in the line of fire. Mr Gompertz said "considerable doubt" had been cast over the journalist's version of his meeting with Dr Kelly.

"Mr Gilligan has proved himself to be an unreliable historian in other respects," he said.

Heather Rogers, for Mr Gilligan, said the journalist was right to report Dr Kelly's remarks on "issues of real substance". The Government's response was "that of a playground bully. They did not like Andrew Gilligan and set out to get him".

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INDEPENDENT

Hutton inquiry website

British Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee transcript:

Evidence of Dr David Kelly

Key players in the 'sexed-up dossier' affair

Herald Feature: Iraq