HL Deb 13 October 2003 vol 653 cc95-6WA
Lord Jopling

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, during the private briefings for Opposition party leaders prior to the Iraq campaign, the leaders were told of the Joint Intelligence Committee's assessment "that any collapse of the Iraqi regime would increase the risk of chemical and biological warfare technology or agents finding their way into the hands of terrorists, not necessarily Al'Qaeda," as reported in the Intelligence and Security Committee's report (Cmd 5972, page 34.) [HL4560]

Baroness Amos

At the Prime Minister's request, the Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee briefed the leaders of the two main Opposition parties in mid-February 2003. These briefings drew on a range of assessed intelligence on matters relating to Iraq which was available to the Government at that time.