London bombings: Why does Blair oppose an inquiry into intelligence failures?

Tory leader Michael Howard called on July 10 for an examination of “whether anything more could have been done” to prevent the bombings. This broached the issue of possible intelligence failures—particularly the decision by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) to downgrade the threat level facing the UK in June from “severe general” to “substantial.”

Cabinet minister John Hutton denounced the proposal, saying “every ounce” of effort was needed to bring the criminals to justice and that there was no evidence of “complacency” on the part of the security services. Blair himself told Parliament that no “specific intelligence” could have prevented the bombings, which he again attributed to Islamist terrorists.

The Tories clearly feared being denounced for breaking national unity, so Howard retreated from demanding an immediate inquiry in favour of suggesting a future probe. “A limited inquiry could, in due course, provide a calm and dispassionate forum for learning appropriate lessons, helping to quell unhelpful speculation,” he said.

In opposing such an inquiry, Blair is following in the footsteps of the Bush administration. After the terror attacks of September 11, 2001, the White House categorically opposed an inquiry into why the destruction of the World Trade Centre and the attack on the Pentagon had not been prevented.

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http://wsws.org/articles/2005/jul2005/lond-j13.shtml