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| Goldsmith denies BAE cash claim | Goldsmith denies BAE cash claim |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The attorney general has denied claims that he concealed the existence of secret payments to a Saudi prince from an international anti-bribery watchdog. | |
| The Guardian claims that Lord Goldsmith hid details from the OECD of payments from BAE Systems to ex-Saudi ambassador to the US, Prince Bandar bin Sultan. | The Guardian claims that Lord Goldsmith hid details from the OECD of payments from BAE Systems to ex-Saudi ambassador to the US, Prince Bandar bin Sultan. |
| Lord Goldsmith's office said the allegation was "categorically untrue". | Lord Goldsmith's office said the allegation was "categorically untrue". |
| The prince negotiated a £40bn arms deal between the UK and Saudi Arabia. He and BAE deny any wrongdoing. | The prince negotiated a £40bn arms deal between the UK and Saudi Arabia. He and BAE deny any wrongdoing. |
| Prince Bandar "categorically" denied receiving any improper payments and BAE said it had acted lawfully at all times. | Prince Bandar "categorically" denied receiving any improper payments and BAE said it had acted lawfully at all times. |
| 'Strategic relationship' | 'Strategic relationship' |
| The payments to the prince, which were made with the knowledge of the Ministry of Defence, were discovered during a Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation. | The payments to the prince, which were made with the knowledge of the Ministry of Defence, were discovered during a Serious Fraud Office (SFO) investigation. |
| The SFO inquiry into the Al Yamamah deal was stopped in December 2006 by Lord Goldsmith. The OECD subsequently launched its own investigation. | The SFO inquiry into the Al Yamamah deal was stopped in December 2006 by Lord Goldsmith. The OECD subsequently launched its own investigation. |
| Prince Bandar was Saudi ambassador to the US for 20 years | Prince Bandar was Saudi ambassador to the US for 20 years |
| It remains unclear whether the payments to the prince were actually illegal - a point which depends in part on whether they continued after 2001, when the UK made bribery of foreign officials an offence. | It remains unclear whether the payments to the prince were actually illegal - a point which depends in part on whether they continued after 2001, when the UK made bribery of foreign officials an offence. |
| In response to Friday's Guardian article, Lord Goldsmith's office said no orders to conceal payments had ever been given. | In response to Friday's Guardian article, Lord Goldsmith's office said no orders to conceal payments had ever been given. |
| On Thursday Prime Minister Tony Blair declined to comment on the payments. | On Thursday Prime Minister Tony Blair declined to comment on the payments. |
| But he said that if the SFO investigation into BAE had not been dropped, it would have led to "the complete wreckage of a vital strategic relationship and the loss of thousands of British jobs". | But he said that if the SFO investigation into BAE had not been dropped, it would have led to "the complete wreckage of a vital strategic relationship and the loss of thousands of British jobs". |
| An investigation by the BBC's Panorama programme, due to be broadcast on Monday, revealed that BAE Systems, the UK's biggest arms dealer, paid hundreds of millions of pounds to the prince over a decade. | An investigation by the BBC's Panorama programme, due to be broadcast on Monday, revealed that BAE Systems, the UK's biggest arms dealer, paid hundreds of millions of pounds to the prince over a decade. |
| It found that up to £120m a year was sent by BAE Systems from the UK into two Saudi embassy accounts in Washington. | It found that up to £120m a year was sent by BAE Systems from the UK into two Saudi embassy accounts in Washington. |
| Private plane | Private plane |
| Panorama established that these accounts were actually a conduit to Prince Bandar for his role in the 1985 deal to sell more than 100 warplanes to Saudi Arabia. | Panorama established that these accounts were actually a conduit to Prince Bandar for his role in the 1985 deal to sell more than 100 warplanes to Saudi Arabia. |
| The purpose of one of the accounts was to pay the expenses of the prince's private Airbus. | The purpose of one of the accounts was to pay the expenses of the prince's private Airbus. |
| Panorama reporter Jane Corbin explained that the payments were Saudi public money, channelled through BAE and the MoD, back to the Prince. | Panorama reporter Jane Corbin explained that the payments were Saudi public money, channelled through BAE and the MoD, back to the Prince. |
| The SFO had been trying to establish whether they were illegal when the investigation was stopped, she added. | The SFO had been trying to establish whether they were illegal when the investigation was stopped, she added. |
| The SFO's inquiry is thought to have angered Saudi Arabia, to the point that there was a risk BAE could lose a contract to sell the new Typhoon fighter to Riyadh. | The SFO's inquiry is thought to have angered Saudi Arabia, to the point that there was a risk BAE could lose a contract to sell the new Typhoon fighter to Riyadh. |
| Prince Bandar, who is the son of the Saudi defence minister, served for 20 years as US ambassador and is now head of the country's national security council. | Prince Bandar, who is the son of the Saudi defence minister, served for 20 years as US ambassador and is now head of the country's national security council. |
| Panorama will be broadcast on Monday 11 June on BBC One at 2030 BST | Panorama will be broadcast on Monday 11 June on BBC One at 2030 BST |