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Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Answer

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information was provided by the United Kingdom to United Nations Security Council members on Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction prior to the vote on UNSC Resolution 1441 on 8th November 2002; what steps were taken to test the reliability of this information prior to passing it on to other UNSC members; and what steps he has taken to correct inaccuracies in this information following the publication of the Iraq Survey Group report. [191732] Mr. MacShane: The Government made available its September 2002 dossier to members of the Security Council to inform them of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programmes prior to the vote on UN Security Council Resolution 1441. The dossier was compiled by the Joint Intelligence Committee following analysis of intelligence available to it at the time. The genesis of the dossier, and the background information that formed its basis was examined in detail by the review headed by Lord Butler of Brockwell. Following further investigation by the SIS in the light of Lord Butler's conclusions, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary announced in a written statement to the House on 12 October 2004, Official Report, column 14WS, the formal withdrawal of the lines of intelligence relating to the "45 minute claim" and Iraqi production of biological agent.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

426 c75W; 191732

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Intelligence services Iraq Weapons WMD Intelligence Review Committee Military intelligence

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk