British watchdog orders Government to release Iraq war documents

[dong20]

Should make interesting reading.

The country's information watchdog ordered the government on Tuesday to release the minutes of cabinet meetings held in March 2003 which discussed the legal justification for going to war in Iraq.

Release of the documents could embarrass Prime Minister Gordon Brown, whose predecessor Tony Blair was accused by critics of glossing over lawyers' initial reservations about launching the invasion of Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

...

"The public interest in disclosing the cabinet minutes in this particular case outweighs the public interest in withholding the information," the office of Information Commissioner Richard Thomas, who adjudicates on contested Freedom of Information Act requests, said in a statement.

EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE

The government had refused to release the cabinet minutes, saying they were exempt from disclosure because they dealt with "the formulation of government policy and ministerial communications," Thomas's office said.

Thomas overruled those arguments, saying release of the information would allow the public more fully to understand the cabinet's decisions on the Iraq war.

However, he left them a potential get out of jail free card, I wonder if the they'll play it. and if so how transparently:

He backed the government's request to withhold references in the minutes which the government argued "would be likely to have a detrimental effect on international relations" if made public.

Government told to release Iraq minutes - Yahoo! News UK

British watchdog orders govt to release Iraq war documents - Yahoo! News UK

 

[Pretend_Woman]

It won't matter. The WMD dossier was bullshit. The war was a ghastly abomination of everything we hold dear. Minutes of a meeting won't change anything. The guilty will walk free, the innocent will die. It won't change.

 

[dong20]

It won't matter. The WMD dossier was bullshit. The war was a ghastly abomination of everything we hold dear. Minutes of a meeting won't change anything. The guilty will walk free, the innocent will die. It won't change.

Probably, but then I don't believe I suggested otherwise. Merely that they may make interesting reading. What would you rather, that Governments be given carte blanche to behave this unchallenged, at all?

 

[frizzle]

It won't matter. The WMD dossier was bullshit. The war was a ghastly abomination of everything we hold dear. Minutes of a meeting won't change anything. The guilty will walk free, the innocent will die. It won't change.

Yeah man, fight the power! Down with Bush! Free peace.

Oh, sorry. I thought we was just shouting out random hippy bullshit in this thread.

 

[SpeedoGuy]

The government had refused to release the cabinet minutes, saying they were exempt from disclosure because they dealt with "the formulation of government policy and ministerial communications," Thomas's office said.​

That sounds sadly similar to happenings here.

Thomas overruled those arguments, saying release of the information would allow the public more fully to understand the cabinet's decisions on the Iraq war.​

Bravo.