Briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Police stats, Iraq attacks, Iraq/Attorney General’s advice, Clare Short and Butler Inquiry.
Police Stats
The Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) drew journalists’ attention to the publication today of the latest police service strength figures for England and Wales. He noted that police numbers had reached a new all time high of 138,000 - an increase of 11,000 since 1997. There had also been an increase of 6,000 between December 2002 and December 2003, the highest annual rise on record. That took the total number of the extended police family, including community support officers and special constables, to more than 212,000. In his speech to the National Reassurance Policing conference today, the Home Secretary would also announce £5 million to fund the reassurance policing programme. He would say that although "crime continues to fall and the chance of being a victim of crime is at its lowest for 20 years, surveys show that 64 per cent of people believe crime has increased". It was clearly important to continue to work hard not only to try to make people safer, but allow them to feel safer as well.
Asked if it was sensible to spend £4m of taxpayers’ money on changing the shape of policemen’s helmets, the PMOS said that as he understood it, this was a trial being run by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), rather than by the Government. Five police forces - Dyfed Powys, Greater Manchester, Wiltshire, Thames Valley and Dorset - would be taking part at different times over the next twelve months. ACPO had issued a statement on this matter yesterday. He encouraged those interested to speak to them.
Iraq/Attacks
Asked the Prime Minister’s reaction to the attacks in Iraq this morning, the PMOS said that the Prime Minister condemned them absolutely. They would only serve to strengthen the resolve of the Coalition, the international community and the Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) to continue on the journey towards political and economic progress. It was no accident that the attacks had come the day after the IGC had reached agreement on the Transitional Law which safeguarded religious freedom. Nor was it any accident that they had occurred on the day that Iraqi Shi’ites were marking the Ashoura festival for the first time in years as they had been unable to do under the tyranny of Saddam Hussein. The perpetrators were clearly trying to stop political progress, stop expressions of religious freedom and stop the journey towards a more democratic and prosperous country. They did not want to acknowledge the fact that Saddam Hussein’s years of bloody tyranny were over. They did not want progress. They stood for nothing, apart from their own hatred and bigotry.
Asked if the Prime Minister believed that the attacks in Iraq and Pakistan this morning had been co-ordinated and therefore presented a wider threat, the PMOS said that there would appear to have been an attempt to foment religious unrest in both countries. In relation to Iraq, however, everybody was aware of what was at stake. The prize was a democratic Iraq for the Iraqi people by the Iraqi people. Yesterday had been a very significant step forward. That progress was not going to be derailed by a minority. They might be destructive and a force for evil, but we were absolutely determined that they were not going to prevail.
Asked how we could expect the handover of power and elections to be held in Iraq when there was clearly a security problem, the PMOS reminded journalists that some people had said that we would never be able to reach an agreement on the Transitional Law. Yesterday had clearly proved them wrong. We had always acknowledged that the timetable for the summer was challenging. However, we would simply not allow terrorists to derail the progress that was being made. It was impossible to legislate for the sort of fanaticism, extremism, and evil we had seen today. However, what we could - and would - do was to continue to try to build the peaceful and prosperous Iraq that the Iraqi people wanted to see. Asked if the UK would be prepared to boost its security presence in the country, the PMOS said that these issues were kept under constant review, as you would expect.
Iraq/Attorney General’s Advice
Asked if Downing Street considered the Attorney General’s legal advice on the Iraq conflict to constitute a Cabinet paper in the light of today’s Guardian report and information from the Parliamentary Ombudsman’s office stating that she was able to request papers for examination unless they were Cabinet papers, the PMOS said he thought it would be useful to give some background to the story today. A Guardian journalist had made a request to the Government for the Attorney General’s advice. The request had been declined because of exemptions to the Code on Access to Government Information - those exemptions being 2 (internal policy advice) and 4 (legal professional privilege). We were confident that we had acted according to the Code. The journalist concerned had then asked us to review the decision that had been taken. We had done so, but had subsequently upheld it. The journalist had then approached the Parliamentary Ombudsman, Ann Abraham, who had asked us for the relevant papers. However, because of our absolute confidence that the Attorney General’s advice was covered by legal professional privilege, under that exemption we would not be disclosing it to her. Put to him that the Ombudsman was not asking for the disclosure of the papers on the grounds of freedom of information but under her powers as Parliamentary Ombudsman, the PMOS said he did not believe that the position would be any different.
Clare Short
Asked if the Prime Minister believed that Clare Short should remain a member of the Privy Council, the PMOS said that he had nothing to add to what we had been saying about this matter over recent days. Questioned as to whether there was a timetable for a review of Ms Short’s Privy Council membership, the PMOS said that if there was anything further to say about this issue, journalists would obviously be informed. However, that should not be interpreted as a hint that something was about to happen. The Government was getting on with the important business of improving Britain’s public services. The Home Secretary’s announcement this morning about the rise in police numbers was obviously an important development in that regard. That was our focus.
Asked if the Prime Minister had contacted Kofi Annan recently to discuss Ms Short’s spying allegations, the PMOS said that they had not spoken in the last few days. He reminded journalists that the UK’s Ambassador to the UN had spoken to Dr Annan last Thursday.
Butler Inquiry
Asked if the Butler Committee would continue with its Inquiry, the PMOS said yes. As they had explained in their statement issued last night, "The Committee must start by looking at structures, processes and systems before considering which, if any, individuals should be held accountable". Asked if the Prime Minister was intending to reply to yesterday’s letter from the Leader of the Opposition informing him of his party’s withdrawal, the PMOS said that the Prime Minister was a very courteous man and would no doubt respond in due course. Asked if Downing Street would publish the letter in the same way that the Opposition Leader had published his yesterday, the PMOS said that it was our usual practice to leave it up to the recipient of a Prime Ministerial letter to decide whether they wished to publicise it or not.
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