Introduction
“The prime
purpose of the Inquiry is to identify lessons to be learned. The
Inquiry
is not a
court of law and nobody will be on trial, although the Committee
will not shy
away from
making criticisms if warranted. In the event that a particular
witness may
be the
subject of criticism by the Inquiry, the Inquiry Secretariat will,
in accordance
with normal
practice, notify that witness separately, in writing at least seven
days
in advance
of the evidence session, of the nature of the potential criticism
and
the
evidence that supports it.”
112.
Paragraph 30
of the Witness Protocol says that:
“If the
Inquiry expects to criticise an individual in the final report,
that individual
will, in
accordance with normal practice, be provided with relevant sections
of the
draft
report in order to make any representations on the proposed
criticism prior
to
publication of the final report.”
113.
All witnesses
who appeared before the Inquiry were told in advance of the
areas
that would
be covered during questioning. A small number were also notified of
points
of
potential criticism before they gave evidence to the Inquiry, in
accordance with
paragraph
10.
114.
Material which
now forms part of the Inquiry’s Report continued to be received
and
assessed
after the conclusion of its hearings. In July 2013, the Inquiry
told a number of
individuals
that they would be given an opportunity to make representations on
points
of
potential criticism, in accordance with paragraph 30.
115.
Relevant
extracts from the Inquiry’s draft report were sent to those
individuals
on a
confidential basis from October 2014, following completion of the
process of
declassifying
material from the minutes of Cabinet meetings and from
communications
between Mr
Blair and President Bush. A small number of individuals received
further
material in
early 2016.
116.
In the
Inquiry’s view, this procedure was necessary to ensure fairness to
those
who might
be criticised in the Report. The Inquiry appreciates the
constructive manner
in which
all who were engaged in the Maxwellisation process
responded.
117.
In reaching
its final conclusions, the Inquiry has considered all
representations
received
with care.
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