Former British cabinet minister demands probe into Iraq war advice

0 Comments | AFP, February, 2005

LONDON, (AFP) — Former British cabinet minister Clare Short is demanding a parliamentary probe into Attorney General Peter Goldsmith's advice on war with Iraq.

Short said Thursday night that Lord Goldsmith breached the ministerial code by submitting a summary of his advice to senior ministers.

Two of Prime Minister Tony Blair's key allies were involved in drafting a ministerial answer issued in the peer's name, according to a leak published in the Guardian newspaper.

Short said it was this that had earlier been shown to the cabinet as it contemplated military action. Britain joined the US-led invasion of Iraq on March 20, 2003.

"It says in the ministerial code that if any advice from the law officers is summarised when it comes to Cabinet the full...