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| Chilcot report live: 'We just want the truth,' say families | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 8.54am BST | |
| 08:54 | |
| The parents of Senior Aircraftsman Peter McFerran, 24, from North Wales, who was killed in southern Iraq in 2007, arrived at the QE2 centre in London shortly before the report was released to families at 8am, the Press Association reports. The couple had travelled to London from Flintshire and wore “Justice for Peter” T-shirts. | |
| McFerran’s mother Ann, 64, said she was “apprehensive” and “didn’t know what to expect”. She said it was her husband Bob’s 73rd birthday and added: “The right outcome would be a good birthday present.” Asked what that outcome would be, she replied: “Justice for Peter.” | |
| 8.45am BST | |
| 08:45 | |
| Chilcot says he hopes his report will ensure Britain never goes to war again without proper consideration | |
| Sir John Chilcot has been giving interviews ahead of the publication of his report. Here are the key points he has been making. | |
| The main expectation that I have is that it will not be possible in future to engage in a military or indeed a diplomatic endeavour on such a scale and of such gravity without really careful challenge analysis and assessment and collective political judgement being applied to it. | |
| There are many lessons in the report but that probably is the central one for the future. | |
| It’s turned out to be on an unprecedented scale. There is no doubt that it’s taken a lot longer than the government which set us up expected, or indeed what we expected at the start, but to get to the bottom of what happened over a nine year period with all the legal, military, diplomatic, and intelligence aspects of it has proved very great. Apart from the oral witness hearings which we’ve held, we had to scrutinise and analyse something like over 150,000 government documents. That’s a huge task and takes a great deal of time if you’re going to get to the bottom of all of that. I think getting agreement on the material that we could publish from that government archive has taken time in itself, but if we are going to give - as we believe we have - a really reliable account, we’ve had to get agreement from government to publish some things which are quite without precedent; cabinet discussions, discussions with other heads of state and government. | |
| I made very clear right at the start of the Inquiry that if we came across decisions or behaviour which deserved criticism then we wouldn’t shy away from making it. And indeed, there have been more than a few instances where we are bound to do that. But we shall do it on a base of a rigorous analysis of the evidence that supports that finding. We are not a court - not a judge or jury at work - but we’ve tried to apply the highest possible standards of rigorous analysis to the evidence where we make a criticism. | |
| 8.30am BST | |
| 08:30 | |
| Jamie Grierson | |
| Two soldiers who fought in Iraq have criticised the lack of planning and resources during the conflict on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. | |
| Ahead of the publication of the Chilcot report, Lance Corp Iain McMenemy described the anarchy after the toppling of Saddam Hussein, while Lance Corp Damien Hern said the Middle-Eastern country had been left a mess. | |
| McMenemy told the programme that shortly after British troops crossed into Iraq, a number of soldiers had their body armour plates taken from them. | |
| We were issued with the body armour vest and we were given ceramic plates, one for the front, one for the back and that’s what stops a bullet. | |
| First week into the combat campaign itself we were asked to give them up ... There were other troops that would be fighting perhaps on foot and the ones that were fighting on foot should have those ceramic plates because they may have more need for it. | |
| At the time we were asked we were manning vehicle checkpoints on foot so we were very much at that point in the firing line so we felt we shouldn’t be asked to give up the ceramic plates which were the difference between stopping a bullet and not. | |
| The men told the programme that many soldiers had to wear ”greens” rather than desert camouflage uniforms. Hern recalled a visit by Tony Blair, during which he was asked not to attend because he still had a green uniform. | |
| When Tony Blair came out to visit the troops I was based at Umm Qasr and he came to say thank you to the troops who were involved in the campaign. | |
| I was still in green kit at the time, so I was still in UK kit. We were told by the camp sergeant major, who was in charge of that visit, that anybody who was in green was to stay away from the parade. Do not come near the parade. The prime minister does not want to see people dressed inadequately in the wrong kit. It would send out the wrong message. | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.37am BST | |
| 8.25am BST | |
| 08:25 | |
| John Miller, whose son Simon was one of six military policemen murdered in Iraq in 2003, told Sky News this morning that he hoped Tony Blair would be put on trial at the international criminal court. “There’s got to be some kind of court case, be that in The Hague or elsewhere,” he said. “I want to see him in the dock.” | |
| Millier is set to be disappointed. In a statement at the the weekend the office of the prosecutor at the international criminal court said: | |
| We will take note of the Chilcot report when released in the context of its ongoing preliminary examination work concerning Iraq/UK. A preliminary examination is not an investigation but a process aimed at determining whether reasonable basis exist to open an investigation. As already indicated by the office in 2006, the ‘decision by the UK to go to war in Iraq falls outside the court’s jurisdiction’. | |
| This means the ICC is looking at allegations of torture and abuse by British soldiers, but that it cannot consider whether the decision to go to war was a crime. It cannot consider a “crime of aggression”. In the future it may get jurisdiction over “crimes of aggression”, but the ICC said at the weekend that this “has not yet crystalised and in any event, will not apply retroactively”. | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.39am BST | |
| 8.11am BST | 8.11am BST |
| 08:11 | 08:11 |
| Andrew Sparrow | Andrew Sparrow |
| Good morning. I’m Andrew Sparrow, taking over from Claire. I will be writing the blog today with my colleague Peter Walker. | Good morning. I’m Andrew Sparrow, taking over from Claire. I will be writing the blog today with my colleague Peter Walker. |
| Journalists have just been admitted to the “lock-in” at the Queen Elizabeth conference centre in London where they have three hours to read the report before the embargo is lifted and the first stories about what it contains can be published at 11am. Sir John Chilcot will also make a statement about its contents then. | |
| This is from the Press Association’s Andrew Woodcock: | |
| Behind this door is the #Chilcot report. Press heading in for three hours of speed reading pic.twitter.com/4sqMJX7B4x | Behind this door is the #Chilcot report. Press heading in for three hours of speed reading pic.twitter.com/4sqMJX7B4x |
| And this is from the BBC’s Iain Watson: | |
| The press wait for access to #Chilcot report at Westminster We see it at 8 pic.twitter.com/0cVKd2i0L8 | The press wait for access to #Chilcot report at Westminster We see it at 8 pic.twitter.com/0cVKd2i0L8 |
| Updated | |
| at 8.40am BST | |
| 7.54am BST | 7.54am BST |
| 07:54 | 07:54 |
| We are likely to hear directly from Tony Blair later today, after the publication of the Chilcot findings. | We are likely to hear directly from Tony Blair later today, after the publication of the Chilcot findings. |
| Blair is planning to hold a press conference to deliver a robust response to the findings. He will insist the Shia-Sunni split in Iraq, one of the driving forces of the continuing violence, preceded the invasion and was not the result of the disruption created by the war. | Blair is planning to hold a press conference to deliver a robust response to the findings. He will insist the Shia-Sunni split in Iraq, one of the driving forces of the continuing violence, preceded the invasion and was not the result of the disruption created by the war. |
| He will claim that Iran and al-Qaida had a role in creating the insecurity inside Iraq after the invasion. At same time, he will acknowledge he is now more cautious about the consequences of unleashing dangerous forces when a strongman such as Saddam Hussein is removed. | He will claim that Iran and al-Qaida had a role in creating the insecurity inside Iraq after the invasion. At same time, he will acknowledge he is now more cautious about the consequences of unleashing dangerous forces when a strongman such as Saddam Hussein is removed. |
| He will again apologise for the mistaken intelligence about Saddam’s alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction, but will point to evidence that the Iraqi leader sought to mislead the United Nations weapons inspectors and his own military in order to strengthen his political position inside Iraq. | He will again apologise for the mistaken intelligence about Saddam’s alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction, but will point to evidence that the Iraqi leader sought to mislead the United Nations weapons inspectors and his own military in order to strengthen his political position inside Iraq. |
| Blair insists he gave no secret irrevocable pledges to Bush that the UK would go to war and any commitments of solidarity were subject to political support. His attempts to secure a second UN resolution that set tests Saddam needed to meet so as to avoid invasion is presented by Blair as proof there was no pre-ordained invasion. | Blair insists he gave no secret irrevocable pledges to Bush that the UK would go to war and any commitments of solidarity were subject to political support. His attempts to secure a second UN resolution that set tests Saddam needed to meet so as to avoid invasion is presented by Blair as proof there was no pre-ordained invasion. |
| Blair has previously accepted that the post-war planning was inadequate, but the report is likely to blame Whitehall inadequacy and the lack of expertise in the Foreign Office as well as turf wars in Washington. | |
| Read more here. | Read more here. |
| Updated | |
| at 8.42am BST | |
| 7.49am BST | 7.49am BST |
| 07:49 | 07:49 |
| Mordaunt is asked about reports today that Andrea Leadsom’s banking career isn’t quite as billed. | Mordaunt is asked about reports today that Andrea Leadsom’s banking career isn’t quite as billed. |
| A reminder from today’s morning briefing of a report in the Times, drawing on comments from a former colleague of Leadsom on Reaction: | |
| Andrea Leadsom has no experience as an investment banker … During 10 years at the investment fund Invesco Perpetual, from 1999 to 2009, she did not have any role in managing funds or advising clients. Despite the title ‘senior investment officer and head of corporate governance’ she only held approval from the financial services regulator – required for any roles dealing with funds or clients – for a three-month period from December 2002 to February 2003. | Andrea Leadsom has no experience as an investment banker … During 10 years at the investment fund Invesco Perpetual, from 1999 to 2009, she did not have any role in managing funds or advising clients. Despite the title ‘senior investment officer and head of corporate governance’ she only held approval from the financial services regulator – required for any roles dealing with funds or clients – for a three-month period from December 2002 to February 2003. |
| A spokesman for Leadsom told the Times: | A spokesman for Leadsom told the Times: |
| Anyone who reads Andrea’s CV and attaches a lot of weight to that particular role may actually be under some slight misapprehension as to what it was she actually did. | Anyone who reads Andrea’s CV and attaches a lot of weight to that particular role may actually be under some slight misapprehension as to what it was she actually did. |
| On the Today programme, Mordaunt says – not sure how this fits with the spokesman’s quote above – that the Times report is a ... | |
| totally bogus article that she [Leadsom] was not given the right to reply to. This is a concerted effort to rubbish a stellar career and imply she was just making the tea. | |
| Pressed on whether Leadsom has actually run an investment fund, Mordaunt insisted: | Pressed on whether Leadsom has actually run an investment fund, Mordaunt insisted: |
| Yes, she has … at Barclays. She was running a fund. She was also managing the global banking network. | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.43am BST | |
| 7.46am BST | 7.46am BST |
| 07:46 | 07:46 |
| Two Tory MPs – Penny Mordaunt, a supporter of Andrea Leadsom, and Ed Vaizey, a Michael Gove fan – are on the Today programme to, in essence, argue that their candidate ought to be the second name on the ballot to party members. | Two Tory MPs – Penny Mordaunt, a supporter of Andrea Leadsom, and Ed Vaizey, a Michael Gove fan – are on the Today programme to, in essence, argue that their candidate ought to be the second name on the ballot to party members. |
| Mordaunt says: | Mordaunt says: |
| We have a huge responsibility to put forward the two best candidates – it’s party leader but it’s also the prime minister. A final with two women in it would be very exciting but it’s got to be on merit. | |
| She praises Leadsom for her foresight and reforming zeal. | She praises Leadsom for her foresight and reforming zeal. |
| Vaizey, on the other hand, thinks Leadsom doesn’t yet have the chops for the job: | Vaizey, on the other hand, thinks Leadsom doesn’t yet have the chops for the job: |
| Michael Gove is the most experienced of the two candidates vying for second place on the ballot. What motivates Michael … is about social justice, reaching out to those people who’ve been left behind. | |
| Vaizey says (slightly bafflingly) that one of the things people often don’t know about Gove is that ... | |
| He is very close to the chancellor and the prime minister … I think that’s important. | He is very close to the chancellor and the prime minister … I think that’s important. |
| And he doesn’t think the Gove U-turn on backing Boris Johnson will hurt him among party members: | |
| They’ll trust a man who was prepared to make that decision … He felt he [Johnson] wasn’t the right person to be prime minister. | They’ll trust a man who was prepared to make that decision … He felt he [Johnson] wasn’t the right person to be prime minister. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 8.44am BST | |
| 7.31am BST | 7.31am BST |
| 07:31 | 07:31 |
| Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning, Karen Thornton, whose son Lee was killed in Iraq in 2006, said she remained convinced that Tony Blair had exaggerated intelligence about Iraq’s capabilities and should face a trial for war crimes: | Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning, Karen Thornton, whose son Lee was killed in Iraq in 2006, said she remained convinced that Tony Blair had exaggerated intelligence about Iraq’s capabilities and should face a trial for war crimes: |
| If it is proved that he lied then obviously he should be held accountable for it … He shouldn’t be allowed to just get away with it. | If it is proved that he lied then obviously he should be held accountable for it … He shouldn’t be allowed to just get away with it. |
| But she did not feel confident that John Chilcot’s report would provide the accountability she was hoping for: | But she did not feel confident that John Chilcot’s report would provide the accountability she was hoping for: |
| Nobody’s going to held to account and that’s so wrong … I think the people who lied should be held to account. | Nobody’s going to held to account and that’s so wrong … I think the people who lied should be held to account. |
| We just want the truth. | We just want the truth. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.37am BST | at 7.37am BST |
| 7.11am BST | 7.11am BST |
| 07:11 | 07:11 |
| Morning briefing | Morning briefing |
| Claire Phipps | Claire Phipps |
| The big picture | The big picture |
| With John Chilcot publishing – after seven years of inquiry – his report into the war in Iraq, we can expect/hope that the rest of the day will be relatively quiet. The world of politics does sometimes remember how to do respectful. This might be one of those days. | With John Chilcot publishing – after seven years of inquiry – his report into the war in Iraq, we can expect/hope that the rest of the day will be relatively quiet. The world of politics does sometimes remember how to do respectful. This might be one of those days. |
| Tuesday night did, however, heap some news upon us, with the Tory leadership field thinning from five hopefuls to three. With the first round of voting by Conservative MPs completed, Fox was chased off and Crabb scuttled after him. | Tuesday night did, however, heap some news upon us, with the Tory leadership field thinning from five hopefuls to three. With the first round of voting by Conservative MPs completed, Fox was chased off and Crabb scuttled after him. |
| Here’s how the voting looked: | Here’s how the voting looked: |
| That saw Fox lopped off the list. Crabb then withdrew, apparently not wishing to prolong our, or his, agony, saying: | That saw Fox lopped off the list. Crabb then withdrew, apparently not wishing to prolong our, or his, agony, saying: |
| I think, given the seriousness of the situation, the quicker we have a new and strong prime minister in place, the better. | I think, given the seriousness of the situation, the quicker we have a new and strong prime minister in place, the better. |
| Both retreating candidates have decided instead to endorse May, putting her in a formidable position ahead of what will now be the final knockout round on Thursday. The two remaining Tory’s Got Talent contestants will then go to the public (as long as they’re paid-up members of the Conservative party) vote to determine who gets to move into No 10 and be the prime minister. | Both retreating candidates have decided instead to endorse May, putting her in a formidable position ahead of what will now be the final knockout round on Thursday. The two remaining Tory’s Got Talent contestants will then go to the public (as long as they’re paid-up members of the Conservative party) vote to determine who gets to move into No 10 and be the prime minister. |
| Gove will be doing his stubborn best to be in that final two, insisting last night that he’s not dropping out: | Gove will be doing his stubborn best to be in that final two, insisting last night that he’s not dropping out: |
| I think the message I have – optimism and hope about Britain’s bright future outside the European Union – is one that is shared by many Conservative members and voters, and indeed by the majority of the country … | I think the message I have – optimism and hope about Britain’s bright future outside the European Union – is one that is shared by many Conservative members and voters, and indeed by the majority of the country … |
| I think that they [party members] should have a choice between two candidates of experience, two candidates who have delivered in government departments, and above all they should have a choice between one candidate who argued that we should remain in the European Union and one candidate who argued we should leave. | I think that they [party members] should have a choice between two candidates of experience, two candidates who have delivered in government departments, and above all they should have a choice between one candidate who argued that we should remain in the European Union and one candidate who argued we should leave. |
| “Candidates of experience … who have delivered in government departments” might – should you be a cynical type who reads between the lines strung out for us by politicians – be a reference to the perceived lack of these things by Leadsom, Gove’s rival for that number two slot on the ballot. | “Candidates of experience … who have delivered in government departments” might – should you be a cynical type who reads between the lines strung out for us by politicians – be a reference to the perceived lack of these things by Leadsom, Gove’s rival for that number two slot on the ballot. |
| Claims by Leadsom supporter Bernard Jenkin that she held a senior role at “a large investment firm where she was responsible for managing hundreds of people and billions of pounds” are – reports the Times today, drawing on comments from a former colleague of hers on Reaction – not quite right. The Times reports: | Claims by Leadsom supporter Bernard Jenkin that she held a senior role at “a large investment firm where she was responsible for managing hundreds of people and billions of pounds” are – reports the Times today, drawing on comments from a former colleague of hers on Reaction – not quite right. The Times reports: |
| Andrea Leadsom has no experience as an investment banker … During 10 years at the investment fund Invesco Perpetual, from 1999 to 2009, she did not have any role in managing funds or advising clients. Despite the title ‘senior investment officer and head of corporate governance’ she only held approval from the financial services regulator – required for any roles dealing with funds or clients – for a three-month period from December 2002 to February 2003. | Andrea Leadsom has no experience as an investment banker … During 10 years at the investment fund Invesco Perpetual, from 1999 to 2009, she did not have any role in managing funds or advising clients. Despite the title ‘senior investment officer and head of corporate governance’ she only held approval from the financial services regulator – required for any roles dealing with funds or clients – for a three-month period from December 2002 to February 2003. |
| A spokesman for Leadsom conceded: | A spokesman for Leadsom conceded: |
| Anyone who reads Andrea’s CV and attaches a lot of weight to that particular role may actually be under some slight misapprehension as to what it was she actually did. | Anyone who reads Andrea’s CV and attaches a lot of weight to that particular role may actually be under some slight misapprehension as to what it was she actually did. |
| Team Leadsom said it would be releasing her full CV this morning. But not her tax return. | Team Leadsom said it would be releasing her full CV this morning. But not her tax return. |
| May released four years of her tax returns yesterday, showing that last year she earned a salary of £112,426 as an MP and home secretary, plus £617 in interest and £5,419 in dividends. She banks at Coutts, where they give new savers a mink piggy bank, which is nice. Gove flung his earnings into the public arena at the weekend, revealing his only income came from his job as education secretary (£117,786 in 2013-14) and as chief whip the following year (£96,071). | May released four years of her tax returns yesterday, showing that last year she earned a salary of £112,426 as an MP and home secretary, plus £617 in interest and £5,419 in dividends. She banks at Coutts, where they give new savers a mink piggy bank, which is nice. Gove flung his earnings into the public arena at the weekend, revealing his only income came from his job as education secretary (£117,786 in 2013-14) and as chief whip the following year (£96,071). |
| Given the peak fever has receded, I’m not sure we can still call Labour’s leadership situation a crisis, but whatever it is, it’s still limping on. The take-home from hours of talks yesterday between deputy leader Tom Watson and trade union chiefs is that the shadow cabinet will take part in formal peace talks to try to bring together the party’s factions. As my colleagues Heather Stewart and Rowena Mason report: | Given the peak fever has receded, I’m not sure we can still call Labour’s leadership situation a crisis, but whatever it is, it’s still limping on. The take-home from hours of talks yesterday between deputy leader Tom Watson and trade union chiefs is that the shadow cabinet will take part in formal peace talks to try to bring together the party’s factions. As my colleagues Heather Stewart and Rowena Mason report: |
| The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, or her predecessor, Brendan Barber, are seen as potential chairs for the negotiations, which are aimed at averting an immediate challenge to Corbyn’s leadership and “cooling the temperature”. The role is likened by some senior party figures to that of Gen John de Chastelain, who oversaw the disarmament process in Northern Ireland. | The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, or her predecessor, Brendan Barber, are seen as potential chairs for the negotiations, which are aimed at averting an immediate challenge to Corbyn’s leadership and “cooling the temperature”. The role is likened by some senior party figures to that of Gen John de Chastelain, who oversaw the disarmament process in Northern Ireland. |
| I’ll just let that final clause sink in for a moment … | I’ll just let that final clause sink in for a moment … |
| As for who’s in that shadow cabinet, the latest list was released by Jeremy Corbyn’s team yesterday; this seems to be the most up-to-date version but it does – wrongly – include the two peers who, while still technically in their roles due to different rules governing the House of Lords, are not attending: | As for who’s in that shadow cabinet, the latest list was released by Jeremy Corbyn’s team yesterday; this seems to be the most up-to-date version but it does – wrongly – include the two peers who, while still technically in their roles due to different rules governing the House of Lords, are not attending: |
| As we were... @LadyBasildon & @SteveTheQuip still not attending Shadow Cabinet - a position supported by our Lords frontbench team & Group | As we were... @LadyBasildon & @SteveTheQuip still not attending Shadow Cabinet - a position supported by our Lords frontbench team & Group |
| Meanwhile, the Green party announced the five candidates – well, six, as one is a job-share joint ticket – in the running to succeed Natalie Bennett as its new leader, but because none of them has yet performed a devastating double-cross on a former friend, prepare yourself for a period of civility before a winner is announced. I know. It’ll take some getting used to. | Meanwhile, the Green party announced the five candidates – well, six, as one is a job-share joint ticket – in the running to succeed Natalie Bennett as its new leader, but because none of them has yet performed a devastating double-cross on a former friend, prepare yourself for a period of civility before a winner is announced. I know. It’ll take some getting used to. |
| Has the UK Brexited yet? | Has the UK Brexited yet? |
| No. And yesterday Oliver Letwin – essentially now the UK’s minister for Brexit – confirmed that the government hadn’t made a plan for a leave vote. Don’t despair, though, because Letwin is confident that his new Cabinet Office Brexit team can have ready a “fine-grained, multi-dimensional” options paper before the new prime minister settles in her (ok, maybe his) seat on 9 September. | No. And yesterday Oliver Letwin – essentially now the UK’s minister for Brexit – confirmed that the government hadn’t made a plan for a leave vote. Don’t despair, though, because Letwin is confident that his new Cabinet Office Brexit team can have ready a “fine-grained, multi-dimensional” options paper before the new prime minister settles in her (ok, maybe his) seat on 9 September. |
| On that pesky question of whether the triggering of article 50 needs an act of parliament, Letwin said legal advice was that it could be invoked under the royal prerogative. The government was due, by the close of Tuesday, to respond to a legal challenge arguing that parliamentary approval would be needed, but I think we can take Letwin’s revelation as a spoiler on that point. | On that pesky question of whether the triggering of article 50 needs an act of parliament, Letwin said legal advice was that it could be invoked under the royal prerogative. The government was due, by the close of Tuesday, to respond to a legal challenge arguing that parliamentary approval would be needed, but I think we can take Letwin’s revelation as a spoiler on that point. |
| More financial wobbles today: the pound has sunk to three-decade lows and the Asian share markets have fallen. Yesterday, three British commercial property funds suspended trading as asset prices plunged. | More financial wobbles today: the pound has sunk to three-decade lows and the Asian share markets have fallen. Yesterday, three British commercial property funds suspended trading as asset prices plunged. |
| Today the Commons will – at Labour’s insistence – vote on whether the right to remain of EU nationals living in the UK should be guaranteed regardless of future Brexit negotiations. The vote will not be binding on the government – but it’s already proving to be a stumble in Theresa May’s otherwise fairly stomping route to No 10. | Today the Commons will – at Labour’s insistence – vote on whether the right to remain of EU nationals living in the UK should be guaranteed regardless of future Brexit negotiations. The vote will not be binding on the government – but it’s already proving to be a stumble in Theresa May’s otherwise fairly stomping route to No 10. |
| You should also know: | You should also know: |
| Naz Shah stands out as someone who has been prepared to apologise to the Jewish community at a local and national level, and make efforts to learn from her mistakes. In that regard, her reinstatement today seems appropriate and we would hope for no repeat of past errors. | Naz Shah stands out as someone who has been prepared to apologise to the Jewish community at a local and national level, and make efforts to learn from her mistakes. In that regard, her reinstatement today seems appropriate and we would hope for no repeat of past errors. |
| Read these | Read these |
| Martin Chulov, in the Guardian, assesses the impact of the Chilcot report from Baghdad: | Martin Chulov, in the Guardian, assesses the impact of the Chilcot report from Baghdad: |
| Across the Iraqi capital, there is little sense that the long-delayed Chilcot report into Britain’s decision to go to war will change anything. Thirteen years after the invasion, the country is still reeling from the upheaval unleashed by the war. What was envisaged by planners in London and Washington to be a seamless transition from dictatorship to democracy has proved to be anything but. | Across the Iraqi capital, there is little sense that the long-delayed Chilcot report into Britain’s decision to go to war will change anything. Thirteen years after the invasion, the country is still reeling from the upheaval unleashed by the war. What was envisaged by planners in London and Washington to be a seamless transition from dictatorship to democracy has proved to be anything but. |
| A tussle for control of post-Saddam Iraq has barely relented, and continues to ravage the country’s finances, communities and social fabric. Citizens say the relentless grind has become a ‘forever war’ that could rumble on over decades, ensuring that communities torn apart by sectarianism remain at odds for generations. | A tussle for control of post-Saddam Iraq has barely relented, and continues to ravage the country’s finances, communities and social fabric. Citizens say the relentless grind has become a ‘forever war’ that could rumble on over decades, ensuring that communities torn apart by sectarianism remain at odds for generations. |
| ‘Nothing Britain could say or do can address this, or make up for it,’ said Safa Gilbert, a Christian who returned to her home city on Monday from exile in Lebanon. ‘Even if they wanted to help, they did not. And all they needed to do is understand the society first.’ | ‘Nothing Britain could say or do can address this, or make up for it,’ said Safa Gilbert, a Christian who returned to her home city on Monday from exile in Lebanon. ‘Even if they wanted to help, they did not. And all they needed to do is understand the society first.’ |
| In the New Statesman, Hilary Wainwright says many are misjudging Corbyn’s leadership style: | In the New Statesman, Hilary Wainwright says many are misjudging Corbyn’s leadership style: |
| The ‘strong man’ notion of leadership by which Corbyn appears all too often to be judged is not … just a matter of a macho style. It is embedded in the nature of the UK’s unwritten constitution and the immense but opaque power that it gives to the executive: extensive powers of patronage, powers to go to war be ready to press the nuclear button, negotiate treaties of various kinds and in many ways preserve the continuity of the British state … | The ‘strong man’ notion of leadership by which Corbyn appears all too often to be judged is not … just a matter of a macho style. It is embedded in the nature of the UK’s unwritten constitution and the immense but opaque power that it gives to the executive: extensive powers of patronage, powers to go to war be ready to press the nuclear button, negotiate treaties of various kinds and in many ways preserve the continuity of the British state … |
| His credibility as prime minister, a different kind of prime minister from the current model, would require an effective challenge to the centralised nature of power in our political system. A challenge that would need to be made now, while in opposition, with extensive popular participation. | His credibility as prime minister, a different kind of prime minister from the current model, would require an effective challenge to the centralised nature of power in our political system. A challenge that would need to be made now, while in opposition, with extensive popular participation. |
| At Politico, Nicholas Vinocur says the Brexit vote might not be the harbinger of victory Marine Le Pen hoped it would be: | At Politico, Nicholas Vinocur says the Brexit vote might not be the harbinger of victory Marine Le Pen hoped it would be: |
| Prior to Brexit, Le Pen enjoyed a measure of exclusivity in being France’s Eurosceptic-in-chief. Both mainstream parties, President François Hollande’s Socialists and Nicolas Sarkozy’s Les Républicains, were equivocal about the EU and avoided advancing hard positions on the bloc’s future. | Prior to Brexit, Le Pen enjoyed a measure of exclusivity in being France’s Eurosceptic-in-chief. Both mainstream parties, President François Hollande’s Socialists and Nicolas Sarkozy’s Les Républicains, were equivocal about the EU and avoided advancing hard positions on the bloc’s future. |
| But with Brexit, France has a chance to reassert its role in the bloc, and the mainstream positions have shifted dramatically. All leading candidates for the Right’s presidential nomination want to roll back Brussels’ powers, give more say to national parliaments and ultimately vote on EU reform in a vast, bloc-wide referendum. The only difference between that and Le Pen’s proposal? They do not want to give the French an option to leave. | But with Brexit, France has a chance to reassert its role in the bloc, and the mainstream positions have shifted dramatically. All leading candidates for the Right’s presidential nomination want to roll back Brussels’ powers, give more say to national parliaments and ultimately vote on EU reform in a vast, bloc-wide referendum. The only difference between that and Le Pen’s proposal? They do not want to give the French an option to leave. |
| Schadenfreude of the day | Schadenfreude of the day |
| Courtesy of Germany’s Free Democratic party, which sent mobile billboards around London inviting glum pro-EUers to hop over to Berlin: | Courtesy of Germany’s Free Democratic party, which sent mobile billboards around London inviting glum pro-EUers to hop over to Berlin: |
| Hey #London based folks, send us your pics if you see our billboard! #ZeitFürDasNächsteBerlin #Berlin @SebCzaja pic.twitter.com/yH3pZDLhsQ | Hey #London based folks, send us your pics if you see our billboard! #ZeitFürDasNächsteBerlin #Berlin @SebCzaja pic.twitter.com/yH3pZDLhsQ |
| Celebrity intervention of the day | Celebrity intervention of the day |
| Pop behemoth Harry Styles visited the House of Lords on Tuesday, as a guest of life peer Lord (Robert) Winston. At time of writing, Styles’ views on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU are unknown, but given that his appearance prompted this response from a Labour lords spokesman – | Pop behemoth Harry Styles visited the House of Lords on Tuesday, as a guest of life peer Lord (Robert) Winston. At time of writing, Styles’ views on the UK’s withdrawal from the EU are unknown, but given that his appearance prompted this response from a Labour lords spokesman – |
| My theory … is that he was in for the start of the two-day debate on Brexit and its consequences. He’s clearly heard that the government has no direction. | My theory … is that he was in for the start of the two-day debate on Brexit and its consequences. He’s clearly heard that the government has no direction. |
| – we can say with some certainty that this has not helped. | – we can say with some certainty that this has not helped. |
| The day in a tweet | The day in a tweet |
| Labour still has no shadow attorney general. Lucky there's no legally tricky negotiations coming up. | Labour still has no shadow attorney general. Lucky there's no legally tricky negotiations coming up. |
| If today were a work of architecture | If today were a work of architecture |
| It would be the Basilica of the Sagrada Família. Begun in 1882. Completed … not yet. Possibly by 2026. Or 2030. Maybe 2032. | It would be the Basilica of the Sagrada Família. Begun in 1882. Completed … not yet. Possibly by 2026. Or 2030. Maybe 2032. |
| And another thing | And another thing |
| Would you like to wake up to this briefing in your inbox every weekday? Sign up here. | Would you like to wake up to this briefing in your inbox every weekday? Sign up here. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.26am BST | at 7.26am BST |
| 6.53am BST | 6.53am BST |
| 06:53 | 06:53 |
| Chilcot briefing | Chilcot briefing |
| Claire Phipps | Claire Phipps |
| Good morning. Today’s live coverage will focus on the long-awaited publication of the Chilcot report on Britain’s role in the war in Iraq, as well as scooping up the day’s other political goings-on. | Good morning. Today’s live coverage will focus on the long-awaited publication of the Chilcot report on Britain’s role in the war in Iraq, as well as scooping up the day’s other political goings-on. |
| With so much news to sift through, I’m divorcing the early Chilcot news – the report itself is published at 11am – from the rest of the day’s developments; the regular morning briefing (covering leadership and Brexit latest) will follow this post. | With so much news to sift through, I’m divorcing the early Chilcot news – the report itself is published at 11am – from the rest of the day’s developments; the regular morning briefing (covering leadership and Brexit latest) will follow this post. |
| Do join us in the comments below or find me on Twitter @Claire_Phipps. | Do join us in the comments below or find me on Twitter @Claire_Phipps. |
| Chilcot: the timetable | Chilcot: the timetable |
| All times are BST (GMT+1). | All times are BST (GMT+1). |
| What is the Chilcot report? | What is the Chilcot report? |
| Announced on 15 June 2009 by then prime minister Gordon Brown, the inquiry was tasked with examining Britain’s role in Iraq from the run-up to the war, the military action and its aftermath, spanning a period from 2001 to 2009. Predicted to take a year, the inquiry has instead taken seven and has cost £10m. The finished report runs to 12 volumes and 2.6m words. | Announced on 15 June 2009 by then prime minister Gordon Brown, the inquiry was tasked with examining Britain’s role in Iraq from the run-up to the war, the military action and its aftermath, spanning a period from 2001 to 2009. Predicted to take a year, the inquiry has instead taken seven and has cost £10m. The finished report runs to 12 volumes and 2.6m words. |
| This six-minute video explainer takes you through the background – and the key questions the report will attempt to answer. | This six-minute video explainer takes you through the background – and the key questions the report will attempt to answer. |
| What the report will tell us | What the report will tell us |
| Chilcot says the report will not hold back from criticising those in charge in the period under review: | Chilcot says the report will not hold back from criticising those in charge in the period under review: |
| I made very clear right at the start of the inquiry that if we came across decisions or behaviour which deserved criticism then we wouldn’t shy away from making it. And, indeed, there have been more than a few instances where we are bound to do that. | I made very clear right at the start of the inquiry that if we came across decisions or behaviour which deserved criticism then we wouldn’t shy away from making it. And, indeed, there have been more than a few instances where we are bound to do that. |
| In the spotlight will be: | In the spotlight will be: |
| What it probably won’t tell us | What it probably won’t tell us |
| Some background reading | Some background reading |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 7.18am BST | at 7.18am BST |