Mandarins and Mini Mandys
The former NIO mandarin, has been appointed to head The fact that the inquiry will be held in private has not impressed those, like the Liberal Democrats, who argue that only a public inquiry will rebuild public trust.
At least with his Northern Ireland expertise, Sir John should be mindful not to repeat the faults of the interminable But if his deliberations are all in secret he won't be able to follow the more progressive example apparently set more recently by, for example, the
Instead the public looks likely to get something far more limited in scope, along the lines of the report which Sir John compiled into the Presenting that report to the Commons, the former NIO Secretary Paul Murphy said "I am sure that the House will recognise that I am constrained by the wider aspects and implications of national security from going into any detail on these matters. But I shall be considering the matters raised in the report with the greatest care." Which left us all a great deal wiser. Would such a limited exercise assuage public concern on an issue as big as the Iraq War?
Nothing to do with mandarins, but I see that the Daily Mail has decided that our current Secretary of State, Shaun Woodward, should henceforth be dubbed as he is allegedly modelling himself on Lord Mandelson in carrying out his new Cabinet Office duties.
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