SNP SLAM LABOUR AFTER DAMNING EVIDENCE AT CHILCOT

SNP SLAM LABOUR AFTER DAMNING EVIDENCE AT CHILCOT

BROWN ‘DIDN’T KNOW OR DIDN’T CARE’ WHAT TROOPS NEEDED

WE CAN'T TRUST A WORD BROWN SAYS

The SNP Westminster Group have seized on the latest revelations from the Chilcot Inquiry today (Tuesday) as former Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon became the first Cabinet Minister to give evidence and revealed the extent to which Gordon Brown's Treasury underfunded front line troops.

Mr Hoon said the defence budget was underfunded for years prior to the war and had to rely on efficiency savings. As a result of these budget shortfalls, the Ministry of Defence had to buy much of the equipment needed for the conflict at the last minute through the system of "urgent operational requirements" (UORs).

Mr Hoon concluded his session with the revelation that forward equipment budgets which could have been spent on helicopters which would have been operational in Afghanistan now were diverted into operations in Iraq.

Commenting, SNP Westminster Leader and Defence Spokesperson, Angus Robertson said:

“As evidence is given by senior figures involved in the run up to the war in Iraq, it is becoming increasingly clear that brave troops were sent into an illegal war without the necessary equipment by a Cabinet in chaos.

“No wonder Gordon Brown was so keen to conduct this inquiry in private – with every session, Labour’s case for war and actions of Labour Ministers are further discredited.

“And the 2003 invasion has had consequences far beyond Iraqi borders. Geoff Hoon’s revelation that money was diverted from future equipment budgets – money which could have bought helicopters for use in Afghanistan now – shows what a shambles the MoD has become under this Labour Government.”

SNP Treasury Spokesman, Stewart Hosie MP added:

“The Chancellor used the 2003 Pre-Budget Report to boast about spending in Iraq. Now his Defence Secretary says that troopS on the ground simply did not have the equipment they required. Gordon Brown has been living in a fiscal fantasy land for years. He either didn’t know or didn’t care what the armed forces required. This is an unforgivable and inexcusable breach of trust.

“Gordon Brown must appear before the Chilcot Inquiry and explain his decisions without delay. The families of the men and women who gave their lives in Afghanistan deserve to hear to truth from the man who sent their loved ones into combat without the kit they needed.”