Ex-Blair aide defends Iraq dossier

A former spokesman for Tony Blair, the British prime minister who decided to go to war in Iraq in 2003, has defended a dossier used to justify the case for entering the conflict.

Alastair Campbell told a public inquiry into the war on Tuesday that the document, which claimed Iraq could launch weapons within 45 minutes, was a “serious, solid piece of work”.

He also denied a previous accusation that he “sexed up” the dossier to strengthen Blair’s case for joining the war.

“At no point did anybody from the prime minister down say to anybody within the intelligence services: ‘You have got to tailor it to fit this judgment or that judgment,’” he told the London-based inquiry.

Controversial dossier

Campbell described the dossier as a “cautious” assessment which was “owned” by the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), the body which directs the country’s national intelligence organisations.