The Report
of the Iraq Inquiry
713.
Periodic
efforts to synchronise approaches did not produce consistency
across
departments.
714.
In October
2003, COBR commissioned an FCO‑led review of training, security
and
insurance
for UK civilians serving in Iraq to “ensure that there is
consistency across all
government
departments seconding staff and consultants”.464
715.
Sir Michael
Jay sent the findings to Permanent Secretaries and the heads
of
organisations
with secondees in Iraq on 11 November 2003.465
716.
The paper
stated that, before deployment to Iraq, staff from the FCO and
other
government
departments (excluding DFID), and individuals contracted by the
FCO,
attended a
security‑focused training course at the Reserves Training and
Mobilisation
Centre in
Nottingham (Chilwell). The initial course included:
“•
Medical and
dental examination
•
Inoculations
•
Intelligence
Brief
•
NBC
[nuclear, biological and chemical] kit issue and
familiarisation
•
Foreign
Weapon familiarisation
•
Issue of
body armour and helmet, boots, kit bag etc
•
Conduct
after Capture
•
Law of
Armed Conflict
•
Mine
Awareness.”
717.
The course had
been “improved and adapted” at FCO request to include:
“•
Cultural
Awareness Brief
•
Hostage
Situations
•
Environmental
Health
•
Combat
First Aid.”
718.
The course
also included a briefing by the FCO Iraq Directorate on working
and
living
conditions, including a “preliminary security briefing”. Modules on
NBC, “Conduct
after
Capture” and “Law of Armed Conflict” had been dropped.
719.
The paper
stated that, when no course was available at Chilwell,
secondees
attended an
equivalent course provided by a private sector company. In a few
cases,
including
that of Sir Jeremy Greenstock, the requirement for
pre‑deployment training had
been
“overridden”, but it was Iraq Directorate’s “firm policy to insist
that all secondees
receive
such training”.
464
Minute OD
Secretariat to Sheinwald, 28 October 2003, ‘Iraq: Review of
Security Arrangements for
UK Staff’.
465
Letter Jay
to Chakrabarti, 11 November 2003, ‘Security of UK Civilian
Secondees in Iraq’ attaching
Paper,
‘Iraq: Civilian Staff: Training, Briefing, Security and
Insurance’.
366