The Panorama show last night on the Hutton Enquiry was riveting viewing. The most interesting part was where the unbroadcast interview with Dr Kelly was shown:
‘INTERVIEWER (SYNC) Are they an immediate threat?
DAVID KELLY (SYNC) Yes, they are. Even if they’re not actually filled and deployed
today, the capability exists to get them filled and deployed within a matter of days
and weeks, and so yes, they’re a real threat.’
I think Natalie was being kind to the BBC on this point – the BBC has even spun this.
The linked Panorama script includes
“Dr Jones said could only speak for his branch of DIS. But they did have a key role in
checking the dossier’s accuracy for the Joint Intelligence Committee.
And he had a particular worry about its most headline-grabbing claim: that Saddam could
deploy weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes • even at British bases in Cyprus.”
The dossier never linked the 45 minutes to long range targets such as Cyprus.
Why after 18 months have the BBC not bothered to read the dossier?