Iraq War Inquiry — No reasonable impediment — rejected — 25 Mar 2009 at 15:51

The majority of MPs voted against an inquiry into the Iraq war by an independent committee of privy counsellors.

The majority of MPs voted against the motion, which read:^[1]

• This House
• welcomes the Prime Minister's announcement of 18 December 2008^[2] that a fundamental change in the British forces' mission in Iraq will occur by 31 May 2009 at the latest and that at that point the rapid withdrawal of the British troops will take place, taking the total from just under 4,100 to under 400 by 31 July 2009;
• notes that following this announcement there remains no reasonable impediment to announcing an inquiry on the war in Iraq; and
• calls for such an inquiry to be conducted by an independent committee of privy counsellors, and to review the way in which the responsibilities of Government were discharged in relation to Iraq, and all matters relevant thereto, in the period leading up to military action in that country in March 2003 and its aftermath, and to make recommendations on lessons to be drawn for the future.

An alternative motion was voted through in the next division.^[3]

• [1] William Hague MP, House of Commons, 25 March 2009
• [2] Gordon Brown MP, House of Commons, 18 December 2008
• [3] Iraq War Inquiry - Declines to make a proposal, House of Commons Division, 25 March 2009

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