Blair shut me out, says former legal chief Lord Goldsmith

[Hopeless Romantic]

Ex-attorney general gives new evidence stating he was repeatedly shut out of crucial talks ahead of decision on lawfulness of Iraq invasion

Tony Blair repeatedly shut out his government's chief legal adviser from crucial talks about the lawfulness of an invasion of Iraq, evidence released by the Chilcot inquiry tonight reveals.

Lord Goldsmith, then attorney general, records how he was "no longer actively consulted" after warning Blair face-to-face five months before Britain joined US-led military action that an invasion would be in breach of international law.

In a written statement to the inquiry, Goldsmith describes how he was kept out of the loop by some of the then prime minister's closest advisers in Downing Street and by Jack Straw, then foreign secretary, after meeting Blair on 22 October 2002. "My advice was not sought" about UN negotiating tactics, he writes.

He adds: "I was not being sufficiently involved in the meetings and discussions about the resolution and the policy behind it that were taking place at ministerial level." Goldsmith was kept out of the high-level discussions despite his office telling Sir David Manning, Blair's foreign policy adviser, on the day after the 22 October 2002 meeting that "it will be important for the attorney to be kept closely informed of developments".

more

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jan/17/blair-ignored-goldsmith-chilcot-inquiry

[LeftishBrit]

1. But God and George Bush told him to do it, so who needed Goldsmith or the law?

[non sociopath skin]

3. I wouldn't be surprised if the Almightly shortly declares ...

... that, actually, Blair and Dubya kept him out of the loop too ...

The Skin

[Jeneral2885]

2. Blair

the only good thing he did was to create DFID