Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Jeremy Corbyn (Labour). It was answered on Monday, 16 July 2007 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Iraq

Question: Since the United States is planning to withdraw, would it not be better if the British also set a date, or at least had a contingency plan, so that there is a clear timeline? I know the Secretary of State is reluctant to do that, but clearly the pressure is on for us to specify a point by which all the occupying forces will be out of Iraq and Iraq must decide its own future.

Answer: I do not consider myself to be under pressure to declare a timeline. In fact, I consider myself to be under pressure not to declare one. The declaration of a timeline would exacerbate the dynamic that I have just explained. It is obvious what is going on in southern Iraq, where at least 85 per cent. of the violence is directed against our forces. There are people there who want to claim credit for driving us out, in a process that we have already announced and on which we are partly embarked. If my hon. Friend cannot contain his patience and watch us progress in the orderly way in which we have progressed for months, that is a matter for him, but he will certainly not persuade me to put our troops in any more danger than they are in already.

Secondary information