16.3 |
Military fatalities and the bereaved
that the
families of those who died are due more of an explanation of the
history
than the
Board of Inquiry could be expected to provide. I have therefore
decided to
put in
place a review of the arrangements for assuring the airworthiness
and safe
operation
of the Nimrod aircraft over its service life; to assess where
responsibility
lies for
any failures; to assess more broadly the process for compiling
safety cases,
taking
account of best practice in the civilian and military world; and to
make
177.
Mr Browne
discussed the BOI into the loss of Nimrod XV230 with MOD
Ministerial
colleagues
the following day.106
He said
that the MOD would shortly announce the name
of the
Queen’s Counsel who would lead the independent review. It would be
important
for the
families to be able to feed their questions into that
process.
178.
During the
meeting, MOD Ministers concluded that the Nimrod BOI was “a
further
example of
the [BOI] process not necessarily being suited to the requirements
of the
MOD, the
individuals and families involved and, crucially, public
expectation”. Mr Browne
suggested
that there might be merit in a new process comprising:
“... a
short, focused Learning Account style review ... conducted in a
matter of a
few months
followed, as required, by a further review to look beyond the
immediate
circumstances
and which was empowered to engage with individuals and
the
families
affected by the incident, had an independent element and could
draw
from the
advice of those who were well‑practiced in preparing for
evidence‑based
reviews”.
179.
Mr Browne’s
Private Secretary asked Mr Bill Jeffrey, the MOD’s Permanent
Under
Secretary,107
to provide
“advice on the scope and options for improving the BOI
process”
by the end
of January.
180.
Mr Browne’s
Private Office wrote to Mr Ainsworth’s Private Office later
that week,
reporting
Mr Browne’s concern that recent good progress in clearing the
backlog of
inquests
would not be sustained as the military investigation/BOI process
was moving
too
slowly.108
Particular
concerns included:
•
The
significant number of cases (13) over six months that were still
awaiting
completion
of a BOI or RMP investigation, or even a decision on whether a
BOI
was
required. In one case, a decision on whether to hold a BOI was
still awaited
nearly one
year after the incident.
•
The number
of cases where the Swindon and Wiltshire Coroner was
awaiting
SIB
reports.
105
House of
Commons, Official
Report, 4
December 2007, column 687.
106
Minute
Forber to PS/Minister(AF) [MOD], 5 December 2007, ‘Defence
Ministerial Meetings’.
107
Mr Jeffrey
was knighted in the 2008 New Year’s Honours.
108
Minute
APS/Secretary of State [MOD] to PS/Minister(AF) [MOD], 7 December
2007, ‘BOI and
Inquest Backlog’.
109