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New faces in huge Cabinet revamp |
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Gordon Brown has appointed Jacqui Smith as Britain’s first female home secretary in a huge Cabinet overhaul. jacqui smith takes over at the home office Alistair Darling becomes chancellor, David Miliband foreign secretary, Alan Johnson health secretary and Peter Hain work and pensions. Mr Brown’s closest political ally Ed Balls will be the newly-created schools and children secretary. Ruth Kelly goes to transport, Jack Straw is the new justice secretary and Hilary Benn moves to environment. The newly-appointed ministers are gathering in 10 Downing Street for the first Cabinet meeting of Mr Brown’s premiership.
There are 11 members of the old Cabinet – including Tony Blair and John Prescott – who are not in Mr Brown’s first administration. Mr Brown has created three new departments: the Department for Children, Schools and Families, the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills. The Department for Trade and Industry has been abolished, along with the Department for Education and Skills which has been split into two. New Cabinet faces include James Purnell, who takes over as the culture secretary from Tessa Jowell and Andy Burnham, who becomes chief secretary to the Treasury. David Miliband, who at 41 becomes the youngest foreign secretary since David Owen in 1977, said he felt “tremendously honoured”. He pledged a “diplomacy that is patient as well as purposeful, which listens as well as leads”. Jacqui Smith, formerly Labour’s chief whip, is perhaps the biggest surprise in the new line-up. BBC Political Editor Nick Robinson said she was highly regarded by Brownites. But he said she faced a tough job even with a slimmed down Home Office. Prisons and other functions now come under the control of new Justice Secretary Jack Straw, who also becomes the first MP to take up the post of Lord Chancellor. ‘Heavyweights’ departing Douglas Alexander, who was named as Labour’s general election coordinator at the weekend, takes over at the department for international development, which is expected to be given an enhanced role under Mr Brown. Harriet Harman, who was elected deputy leader of the Labour Party, and will be taking over as party chairman, becomes leader of the House of Commons. Hazel Blears, who was among the five MPs to lose out to Ms Harman in the deputy race, becomes communities secretary. John Hutton, who has been replaced as work and pensions secretary by Peter Hain, will become business and industry secretary.
Shaun Woodward, best known for defecting from the Conservatives to Labour in 1999, will replace Mr Hain as Northern Ireland Secretary – the job turned down by Lib Dem peer Paddy Ashdown. Former defence secretary Geoff Hoon is the new Labour Party chief whip. Yvette Cooper, Ed Balls’ wife, becomes housing minister, attending Cabinet when needed. Also attending Cabinet will be Tessa Jowell, who becomes Olympics minister, Attorney General Baroness Scotland and Lords Chief Whip Lord Grocott. Former United Nations deputy secretary-general, Sir Mark Malloch Brown, has been granted a peerage in order to take up the post of minister for Africa, Asia and the UN. He will not have Cabinet rank but will attend Cabinet meetings. Several heavyweight figures in predecessor Tony Blair’s Cabinet are going. John Reid is retiring as home secretary, Margaret Beckett is leaving the role of foreign secretary and Baroness Amos is no longer to be leader of the House of Lords. Patricia Hewitt, who has elderly parents in Australia, said she was quitting as health secretary, and resigning from the government, for “personal reasons”. Former Labour chairman and consumer affairs minister Ian McCartney turned down the offer of a government job, telling Mr Brown it was time for some “fresh faces”. Mid-East envoy It is thought unlikely that a replacement will be announced for outgoing Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.
Before entering 10 Downing Street on Wednesday, the new prime minister said: “I will try my utmost. This is my promise to all of the people of Britain. And now let the work of change begin.” After stepping down as prime minister, Mr Blair also quit as MP for Sedgefield to become a Middle East peace envoy on behalf of the EU, US, UN and Russia. This will prompt a by-election, expected to take place in mid-July. |
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Bombers rock Baghdad university |
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At least 62 people have been murdered and scores wounded in a double bombing at a university in Baghdad, officials say.A car bomb blew up outside Mustansiriyah University, and a suicide bomber targeted students as they fled. Elsewhere in the Iraqi capital, at least 25 people died in car bombings and shootings. The attacks came as the UN said more than 34,400 Iraqis had died in 2006 in violence across the country. It also said more than 36,000 civilians were hurt during the year. The UN’s figures were almost three times the Iraqi government’s estimate. The latest attacks come less than a week after US President George W Bush ordered more than 20,000 additional US troops to Iraq. Most of them are heading for Baghdad in what is expected to be a new security drive by USA and Iraqi forces to rid the city of daily sectarian attacks. Students killed Mike Wooldridge in Baghdad says the bombers apparently attacked at the front and rear entrances of the university building, catching many of the students as they emerged.
A car bomb exploded followed by a suicide bomber who blew himself up among people running the first blast in the predominantly Shia area, police said. Pictures from the campus showed a scene of devastation, with wrecked and blackened vehicles scattered across a wide area. “The majority of those killed are female students who were on their way home,” Reuters news agency quoted a university official as saying. “There’s glass everywhere and the doors were blown out,” an official said. Police said more than 100 people were wounded in the blasts, the worst single attacks in the capital this year. The Ministry of Higher Education has issued a plea for blood donors. Market bombed Hours earlier, another twin bombing tore through a used motorcycle market in Baghdad’s mainly Shia Bab al-Sheik neighbourhood. An initial blast drew in many onlookers, who were then hit by a second explosion moments later. “The first explosion – many people died and the people who came to rescue them were killed in the second explosion,” an unnamed witness told the Associated Press news agency. “There was a motorcycle that exploded in the second blast,” he said. Raad Abbas, 26, described a scene of carnage. “Shortly after midday, I heard an explosion. Motorcycles were flying in the air, people were falling dead and wounded,” he told me. Meanwhile in the north of the capital, gunmen opened fire on shoppers in the mixed al-Bounuk area, killing 10 and wounding seven others, before reportedly fleeing in vehicles. |
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Hanging of Saddam’s aides filmed |
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Iraqi government officials have shown journalists video of the hanging of two of Saddam Hussein’s aides, during which one of the men was decapitated.The film shows Barzan Ibrahim – Saddam Hussein’s half-brother – and Awad Hamed al-Bandar hanged side-by-side. Barzan, former intelligence chief, and al-Bandar, former head of Iraq’s Revolutionary Court, were convicted over the killing of 148 Shias in 1982. The government said the beheading of Barzan was accidental. The latest hangings drew expressions of concern from among the international community. Speaking on a visit to Egypt, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said while the executions were an Iraqi process, “we were disappointed there was not greater dignity given to the accused under these circumstances”. The UK prime minister’s spokesman said it was “clearly wrong” if the executions had not been carried out in a dignified way. Others called for the Iraqi authorities to end further executions and focus on national reconciliation. Hoods a spokes man from an independant organisation, Andrew North located in Baghdad says the video first shows both men being prepared for execution standing next to each other. They were both dressed in orange boiler suits.
Executioners in balaclavas placed hoods round both men’s heads, then the noose. A short while later the footage, which is silent, shows both men fall. Almost immediately the rope that was round Barzan’s neck flicks upwards, the body dropping below. The cameraman then shows the pit below and a headless body, bloodied at the neck and what officials say was Barzan’s head still covered by a hood. Al-Bandar’s body was still hanging above, said one official who was present at the execution. Our correspondent says officials say they are not planning to release the footage publicly. The two men were later buried near Saddam Hussein’s grave in the former Iraqi leader’s home village of Awja about 180 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad. ‘No taunts’ Witnesses said Barzan and al-Bandar were shaking with fear as they approached the gallows. One of those present, public prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi, told us that when the trap door opened, he could only see Barzan’s rope dangling.
‘thought the convict Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti had escaped the noose. I shouted that he’s escaped the noose, go down and look for him. I went down a few steps ahead of the others to see: I found out that his head had separated from his body.” The hangings took place at 0300 (0000 GMT), apparently in the same building in north Baghdad where Saddam Hussein was put to death on 30 December. The manner of Saddam Hussein’s execution drew international criticism after unofficial mobile phone footage showing him being taunted and insulted in his final moments was released. Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said there were no such scenes at the hanging of his aides. The X’s world affairs correspondent Mike Wooldridge says reaction in Baghdad to Barzan and al-Bandar’s executions has been mixed. He says residents of Baghdad’s largest Shia district, Sadr City, have celebrated the latest hangings, especially Barzan’s. But other Baghdad residents have said the executions have nothing to do with the problems Iraqis face every day, our correspondent adds. In the Shia holy city of Najaf, residents beat drums and marched in the streets at news of the executions. |
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Six accused of London bomb plot |
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6 men planned “murderous suicide bombings” on public transport in London on 21 July 2005, a court has heard. The prosecution has told Woolwich Crown Court of their alleged “extremist Muslim plot” targeting London two weeks after the 7th July bombings killed 52. Muktar Ibrahim, Manfo Asiedu, Hussein Osman, Yassin Omar, Ramzi Mohammed and Adel Yahya – all originally from Africa – deny conspiracy to murder. The six also deny charges of conspiracy to cause explosions.
Prosecutor Nigel Sweeney QC said the men chose a date for their plan “just 14 days after the carnage of July 7th”. But the court heard how the conspiracy “had been in existence long before the events of July 7th” and did not appear to be some “hastily arranged copycat”. The prosecutor told how 6 bombs were made using a mix of liquid hydrogen peroxide, chapatti flour, acetone and acid. Evidence that the alleged bombers had been buying the materials necessary in late April 2005 would form part of the prosecution’s case, Mr Sweeney added. The court was told that one order of hydrogen peroxide placed at a trade shop was so large that a new batch of the substance had to be made especially. Each bomb was placed in a large plastic container and screws, tacks, washers or nuts, were taped to the outside to “maximise the possibility of injury”, he said. He told the court it was unclear if the bombs had failed to detonate because they had been manufactured incorrectly at the flat or because of hot weather on 21st July affecting the chemicals. ‘Suicide note’ He outlined the case against each defendant, saying all of them were “would-be suicide bombers” except for Mr Yahya, who was out of the country on 21 July 2005. Mr Sweeney told the court how Mr Mohammed had written a suicide note which was found in pieces after his arrest, and how Mr Asiedu “lost his nerve at the last moment” and dumped his bomb. The court also heard how Mr Ibrahim had been trained for jihad in the Sudan in 2003 and had also travelled to Pakistan the following year “to take part in jihad or to train for it”. Three of the men – Mr Omar, Mr Yahya and Mr Ibrahim – attended Finsbury Park Mosque, north London, to listen to radical cleric Abu Hamza, Mr Sweeney added. The three, together with Mr Asiedu and Mr Osman, had also been among a group of 20 or more people on a camping trip to a farm in Cumbria in May, September 2004, he said. Photographs of them on the last day of their trip by police officers on surveillance, were shown to the jury. One of the defendants, Mr Omar, fled London after the attempted bombings disguised as a woman wearing a burka, the court heard. Mr Sweeney said: “The evidence will show, amongst other things, that at the least of it Ibrahim, Omar, Osman and Yahya all held extremist views. “Second, Ibrahim, Omar and Yahya had all spoken about carrying out jihad.” ‘No hoax’ Hussein Osman was eventually arrested in Rome, where he told police that the plot was a “deliberate hoax”, not a serious attempt to murder commuters.
Mr Sweeney said: “Given the weight of the evidence as to his involvement, what could he say? “The prosecution case is that this was no hoax.” He added: “The failure of those bombs to explode owed nothing to the intention of these defendants, rather it was simply the good fortune of the travelling public that day that they were spared.” The six men were all known to each other by the summer of 2005, Mr Sweeney said. The jury heard that Yassin Omar’s one-bedroom flat in New Southgate, north London, was a bomb factory, “where the great majority, if not all, of the work required to make those bombs was carried out”. On 22 July 2005 – the day after the alleged bombing attempts – a caretaker at the block of flats found a large number of hydrogen peroxide bottles in communal bins and called police. The trial at Woolwich Crown Court is expected to last up to four months. |
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Two die in Iraq and Afghanistan |
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One British soldier has been killed in Iraq and a British marine has been killed in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence has said.The soldier died while on duty in Basra and the marine was killed during operations in the southern province of Helmand, officials confirmed. The families of both men have now been informed. Defence Secretary Des Browne said he was “greatly saddened” by the news of the two deaths. The MOD said the British marine was killed during an ongoing mission to clear Taleban positions and firing points at Kajaki, in Helmand province. ‘Terrible loss’ Brigadier Jerry Thomas, commander of the UK Task Force in Afghanistan, said: “I send my sincere and heartfelt condolences to his family and to his friends. “They have lost a much loved member of their family and a good friend and my thoughts are with them at this difficult time.” Officials said the soldier died proudly in Basra while performing his duty. Mr Browne said his “thoughts and sincere condolences” were with both servicemen’s families, friends and colleagues “as they come to terms with this terrible loss”. Fierce battle Earlier this week British troops killed up to 100 Taleban fighters as they destroyed a key base in Helmand province. It was described as the UK Task Force’s biggest pre-planned operation in the area to date. There are currently 6,000 British troops in Afghanistan, with 1,000 based in the capital, Kabul, and 5,000 in Helmand. In Iraq, there are 7,100 members of the British armed forces based around Basra in the south east of the country. The last soldier to die in Iraq was Sergeant Wayne Rees, 36, who was killed in a road accident in rural Maysan province on 7 January. |
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Reid moves to quell offenders row |
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No violent or sexual offenders have been cleared for work due to a failure to update police records of Britons convicted abroad, the Home Office says.The issue concerns 27,500 files which were not logged on a police computer. Fears had grown that some convicted offenders may have been cleared to work with children after failures to record EU convictions with the Criminal Records Bureau. Home Secretary J. Reid said he wanted to “reassure the public” that he was working “to ensure public protection”. Five of the 540 most serious offenders had sought checks with the CRB for employment purposes which did not show up their crimes, the Home Office said. A spokeswoman confirmed that four of these had been convicted for drugs offences in eastern Europe. The other had been convicted of assisting illegal entry to a country.
She confirmed that 2 were applying for jobs as sports coaches, two had sought employment as carers and one as a foster carer. Four were men and one was a woman, she said. “These offences would not in themselves have necessarily debarred them from the employment that they sought,” she added. The Home Office said it is now informing the offenders’ places of work of the new information. But Shadow Home Secretary David Davis called Mr Reid “out of touch” and said the announcement would not quell people’s fears. More cases probed A further nine cases had been found where individuals with similar details to those on the list had undergone CRB checks. Efforts were continuing to establish whether they were actually the same people, the spokeswoman added. None of the offences committed by this group were of a violent or sexual nature. In a statement, Mr Reid said: “I have authorised these details to be released to reassure the public that the necessary steps are being taken to ensure public protection.” He added that he has asked the police and probation services to ensure that any sex offenders identified would be monitored in the same way as they would if they had been convicted in the UK. The 27,500 figure was calculated by the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) when it took over responsibility for processing the data from the Home Office in March last year. That emerged publicly only earlier this week. The Home Secretary said he was unaware of the backlog. ‘Six-week investigation’ Of the 540 most serious cases, which would include rapes, murders and paedophilia, 260 have now been entered onto the police national computer. But the Home Office says police officers and the CRB will continue to investigate the rest of the non-serious cases and enter them into the database. Director of HR services Dusty Amroliwala, one of the Home Office’s own senior civil servants, is overseeing the inquiry despite calls for it to be taken on by someone outside the department. He is expected to complete his investigations in 6 weeks. |
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US: Iraq PM is ‘on borrowed time’ |
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US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has said that Iraqi PM Nouri Maliki is living “on borrowed time”, but that she is confident he can give Iraq security. Ms Rice was testifying to a Senate hearing about President Bush’s new Iraq strategy, announced Yesterday. Democrats and some Republicans in Congress have criticised the plan, with one senior Democrat, Senator Joe Biden, calling it a “tragic mistake”. As part of the plan, Mr Bush will boost US troop numbers by more than 20,000. Later Defence Secretary Robert Gates promised to increase the overall strength of the armed services by recruiting an extra 92,000 troops. ‘Revision possible’ Asked about how long troops would stay in Iraq, Mr Gates said he thought it would be months not years.
”I don’t think anybody has a definite idea of how long a surge would last,” he told a news conference. “I think for most of us in our minds we’re thinking of it as a matter of months, not 18 months or two years.” He added that the US could revise its plan if Iraqi leaders failed to keep to its commitments. “The timetable for the introduction of additional US forces will provide ample opportunity early on, and before many of the additional US troops actually arrive in Iraq, to evaluate the progress of this endeavour and whether the Iraqis are fulfilling their commitments to us,” he said. Earlier, Ms Rice warned that the US would take action against countries destabilising Iraq. Her statement came hours after US forces stormed a building in the northern Iraqi town of Irbil. Iran said the target had been its consulate, and several Iranians had been arrested. Tehran has condemned the raid. However, sources at the US Pentagon said the building which was raided did not have any diplomatic status. ‘Resolve’ In a television address on Wednesday, Mr Bush said fresh troops in Iraq would help to secure Baghdad’s streets as part of the new strategy.
He said his country’s commitment to Iraq was “not open-ended”, and that he expected the government in Baghdad to fulfil its own promises. While questioning Ms Rice on the plan, Senator Biden, who chairs the Foreign Relations Committee, asked whether she thought Mr Maliki would keep his side of the bargain. “I have met Prime Minister Maliki. I saw his resolve,” she said. “I think he knows that his government is, in a sense, on borrowed time, not just in terms of the American people but in terms of the Iraqi people.” Ms Rice’s testimony was briefly interrupted by an anti-war protester, who shouted: “All lies… More lies… Still lies… Stop the lies… Stop the war!” Senator Biden said he could not accept the plan. “Secretary Rice, to be very blunt, I cannot in good conscience support the president’s approach,” he said, quoted by an independent agency. Senator Chuck Hagel, a Republican on the committee, also said the plan was a mistake. “I think this speech given last night by this president represents the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since Vietnam if it’s carried out,” he said. Non-binding vote Mr Bush said in his address that the situation in Iraq was unacceptable, and that responsibility for mistakes rested with him.
But the new troops, most of whom would be sent to Baghdad, would help secure neighbourhoods in the capital from insurgents, he said. He said the effort would succeed where most previous operations had failed, because this time troop levels would be sufficient to hold areas that had been cleared. The Democrats have promised a non-binding vote in both houses of Congress on the strategy. |
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Clarke slams PM’s foreign policy |
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Former Home Secretary Charles Clarke has criticised MR Tony Blair’s foreign policy, saying that good intentions have “turned to dust”.In an article for the New Statesman, he attacks his ex-boss’s record on Europe, “ethical” foreign policy and nuclear non-proliferation. Mr Clarke said Mr Blair was “hasty” in wanting to replace Trident missiles. He also accused the prime minister of having a “desire not to rock the boat” on the sales of arms to Saudi Arabia. However, Mr Clarke cautioned against the assumption that matters would improve under the leadership of Gordon Brown. ‘Euro-demons’ He argued the chancellor was as responsible as Mr Blair for the development of foreign policy. He said: “The Blair premiership is a classic illustration of the potential for good intentions to turn to dust.’ “The Britain which was to be at ‘the heart of Europe’ has failed to face its Euro-demons and is now more remote from the centre of European power than ever. “An ‘ethical foreign policy’ has given way to a desire not to rock the boat of arms sales to Saudi Arabia. “And a commitment to nuclear non-proliferation has yielded to an over-hasty and ill-considered determination to renew Trident, whatever the future security threats. “These have been the approaches of the whole government, with the chancellor bearing as much responsibility as the prime minister – indeed, in some areas more.” Mr Clarke – who has said he expects to vote for Mr Brown in any leadership contest, despite earlier criticisms of his style – questioned whether the chancellor would be able to provide the “committed international engagement” required. Last year, Mr Clarke accused Mr Brown of “absolutely stupid behaviour” during a row over Mr Blair’s leadership. He said the chancellor was a “control freak”, who lacked confidence and could not manage people in a “collegiate” way. But he later apologised for his comments. |
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Bush set to reveal Iraq strategy |
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USA President George W Bush is preparing to unveil his long-awaited strategy for the future of US involvement in Iraq.The president is expected to bolster US forces in the country by sending more than 21,500 extra American troops to Baghdad and the restive Anbar province. But Democrats, who now control both houses of Congress, have made it clear they plan to oppose what they see as an “escalation” of the war in Iraq. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has pledged to hold a vote on any increase. Officials say the president will announce the deployment 17,500 additional troops in the capital, Baghdad – where Iraqi and US forces have launched a fresh offensive against militants.
Another 4,000 American troops will go to Anbar province. The reinforcements are to be sent over the coming months. The US currently has 132,000 troops stationed in Iraq. White House adviser Dan Bartlett told the BBC that the aim of the new strategy was to break the cycle of sectarian violence and would put the Iraqi leadership in the lead. “It is going to require them to make the kind of economic political and military decisions that we haven’t seen in the past,” he said. Mr G Bush is expected to recommend the transfer of responsibility for security to the Iraqis for all of the country’s 18 provinces. Only three provinces are currently under Iraqi control. However analysts say the president will not tie the reinforcements to security benchmarks to be reached by the Iraqi government. Mr Bush is also expected to announce an additional $1bn (770m euro, £0.5bn) in funds to strengthen Iraq’s battered economy. ‘Symbolic’ vote Veteran Democratic Party senator Edward Kennedy on Tuesday said sending more soldiers would be “an immense new mistake”. He suggested new legislation requiring congressional approval for any such move. But the BBC’s Justin Webb in Washington says many Democrats feel queasy about interfering in military matters – particularly if newly appointed US commanders in Iraq say they need the reinforcements. The Democrats are likely to settle on symbolic votes of disapproval, our correspondent says. However such a move would still be the biggest reconsideration of congressional support for the war since it began, he adds. Mr Bush, whose address will be carried live on all US television networks, is due to speak in Washington at 2100 local time (0200 GMT Thursday). In the UK, Prime Minister Tony Blair declined to say whether he would follow the US lead in increasing troop numbers in Iraq. Britain has 7,200 troops in southern Iraq, mostly in the Basra area. |
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Commons clash over foreign crimes |
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The Home Secretary John Reid has clashed with the Conservatives over reports the Home Office ignored files on serious offences by Britons abroad.Of 540 serious criminals – including rapists and murderers – 280 are still not on the Police National Computer. Mr Reid has promised a full inquiry. There is some concern offenders could have been cleared to work with children. Tory leader David Cameron said Mr Reid “won’t be able to run away” from responsibility if this has happened. Mr Cameron was speaking during rather heated Prime Minister’s Questions with Tony Blair, before Mr Reid made his statement. ‘Incomplete information’ On Tuesday, the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) said details of 27,529 cases, including 25 Britons convicted of rape, were left in files at the Home Office. The association said they should have been entered on the Police National Computer (PNC).
In his statement to the Commons, Mr Reid said that Acpo had entered details of 260 of the 540 serious criminals. “The remaining 280 cannot be entered on the computer and are the subject of further inquiries to the notifying country to get more details to try to establish the identity of the offender,” he added. Shadow home secretary David Davis attacked the department’s recent record as a “catalogue of blunders”. “The last three years have been the worst three years in the Home Office’s 200-year history,” he said. Meanwhile, a row has broken out over a letter that Acpo sent to Home Office minister Tony McNulty last October, which said the association was having difficulties tracking down the criminals. Conclusions expected ACPO said the letter to Mr McNulty, the contents of which it will not release, did not mention the backlog issue. And the Home Office said ministers were not aware of the backlog until Tuesday. Mr Davis said the position of two Home Office ministers would be “untenable” if emerged that they knew about the missing information surrounding British offenders committing crimes abroad. “We need to see the full copy of this letter. ACPO should now publish it including all replies,” he said. “It is also the case that any inquiry cannot be carried out by a civil servant. It must be carried out by a judge.” An inquiry into the Home Office’s handling of the details was expected to be completed within six weeks, Mr Reid said.
The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) would be checking if any disclosures to employers about the most serious offenders needed to be examined again, he added. He said he expected to be told conclusions “in a matter of days”. Zoe Hilton, from children’s charity the NSPCC, said they were “very worried” about the revelations. “Parents need reassurance that actually these people aren’t working with children and they are being urgently traced,” she said. Earlier, Home Office minister Joan Ryan said details of the offences were still being registered by police. She also told BBC News “some answers” were expected on Wednesday as to whether dangerous offenders were working with children. Funding request Responsibility for updating the records was transferred from the Home Office to Acpo last year. The cases involved included: He said information on the cases had been supplied to the UK, but had been “sitting in box files” until his organisation took responsibility for them. And it has emerged that Acpo asked for extra funds to help clear the backlog in October. The request went to a senior Home Office official, but was declined. |
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