Iraq inquiry will be in private

Tony Blair and Alastair Campbell are certain to be hauled before a new independent inquiry into their role in the Iraq war - the episode that cast a blight over their careers and saw them accused of misleading both parliament and the voters over the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction.
 
Gordon Brown announced today that he is setting up a year-long probe into the the conflict and the run-up to it, a period of eight years in total. All the key players will be called to give evidence before a panel of senior privy councillors, to be chaired by Sir John Chilcot.

But - well, there are two buts: first, it will not report back until after the next election and, second, it will be held entirely in private.
 
And so there are already claims of a 'whitewash' before it has even got off the ground - not only because of the in camera decision, but also because Brown says it will not apportion blame or consider civil or legal liability, but simply seek to "learn lessons".
 
It is is based on the structure adopted by the Franks committee, which looked at the 1983 Falklands War. That inquiry was branded a whitewash by the then Labour opposition.

This time, the opposition parties have two main complaints: the Tories know that they will likely be in power by the time it reports. As David Cameron said today, there was a danger the public would believe the process had been "fixed to make sure the Government avoids having to face up to any inconvenient conclusions".

Nick Clegg's beef is the secret hearings. The Lib Dems' leader said the government "must not be able to close the book on this war as it opened it - in secret". He added: "To rebuild public trust, this inquiry must be held in public."

When the Tories pushed for an inquiry last year, Brown got away with the argument that it would be a diversion for the military still on duty in Iraq. Of course, if there had been any indication that the hearings would be held in private, that argument would not have washed.

With families of soldiers who've lost their lives in Iraq likely to join the chorus of protest for a public hearing, Gordon hasn't heard the last of this. ·