Former MP regrets voting yes to war
FORMER Macclesfield MP Nick Winterton has revealed he now regrets voting for Britain to join the war in Iraq.
The former Conservative MP, who served from 1971 to 2010, said had he known at the time that the invasion was based on ‘flawed intelligence’ he would have voted against the war in 2003.
Following the report from the Chilcot Inquiry last week, the 78-year-old also criticised the reconstruction effort in Iraq.
Surprisingly Sir Nick defended Tony Blair over his role in the debacle, claiming the Labour Prime Minister acted ‘sincerely and genuinely’ and should not be scapegoated. Instead he blames the security services.
Sir John Chilcot finally released his long-awaited report with damning criticism of Tony Blair and the processes that led to Brit- ain going to war in Iraq in 2003.
He said Mr Blair presented the case for war with “a certainty which was not justified” based on “flawed” intelligence about the country’s sup- posed weapons of mass destruction (WMD) which was not challenged as it should have been.
Reacting to the report, Sir Nick said: “Do I believe former Prime Minister Tony Blair should take the blame? No, I don’t. We should not be seeking a scapegoat. I am not a supporter of the then PM but I believe he took the decision sincerely and genuinely.
“If anything causes me concern it was that our security services were so off the mark. They were providing the Prime Minister with flawed intelligence.
“We were told there were WMD that could have been in operational within minutes, that we were in danger, so clearly Parliament took the situation very seriously. In hindsight the evidence should have been checked and double checked.
“At the time I had the highest regard for our security services, they were second to none. I feel let down. With hindsight I would have voted differently.”
Sir Nick described the Iraq decision as the most serious of his 39-year political career.
He is not as certain as Mr Blair that regardless of the errors, the world is a better place without Saddam Hussain.
He said: “History will teach us wether it was the right decision.
“What is clear is that we didn’t prepare for the post period after Saddam was toppled. The country was thrown into religious civil war and thousands of people died.”