Iraq war inquiry: military theme set to continue with a host of MI6 spooks lining up to give evidence next week, writes the Iraq Inquiry Blogger for Channel 4 News.
Not a great deal, in truth, to say after this morning’s session. Quite a bit of Peter Ricketts’ evidence was pretty familiar from his appearance last week, and the main theme – an appalling lack of planning for the aftermath of the war – is already well-known. The inquiry transcript will pop up here: iraqinquiry.org.uk/transcripts/writtenevidence.
As I said earlier the MoD come to the fore at the end of the week, and we’ve just been given a timetable of next week’s witnesses.
The military theme continues apace with topics like Post-Invasion Iraq: The Planning and the Reality and Law, Order and Security in the Aftermath, but there’s also a more than a hint of spookery.
Sir John Scarlett will give evidence on Tuesday (8 December) afternoon in his capacity as a former head of the Joint Intelligence Committee, but he’ll have been better known to many as ‘C’ or chief of MI6 from 2004 until earlier this month.
Scarlett was also called to testify at the Hutton Inquiry into the death of the government scientist Dr David Kelly.
And although the inquiry correctly bills Sir John Sawers (10 December) as having served as UK Special Envoy for Iraq in 2003 and FCO Political Director 2003-07 he just happens to have taken up a new job as… Scarlett’s replacement at MI6. It’s a small, shaken-not-stirred world it would appear.
That’s all for today. A reminder to any Twitter addicts that the inquiry doesn’t sit tomorrow but will resume at 9am on Thursday.
p.s. If last week’s follow-thrill was seeing us mentioned on @Glinner this week it’s definitely @EmmaK67. We are not worthy!