UK Sought Changes To Senate CIA Torture Report

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

Britain has been dragged deeper into a row over US torture allegations after the Government admitted it did ask for changes in a Senate report on the CIA's behaviour.

In an abrupt U-turn by No 10, officials admitted changes had been asked for, 24 hours after denying Britain had asked for passages to be removed.

At Thursday's No 10 briefing, David Cameron's Deputy Spokeswoman confirmed British intelligence agencies discussed redactions with their US counterparts.

"My understanding is no redactions were sought to remove any suggestion that there was UK involvement in any alleged torture or rendition," she said.

And then she admitted: "There was a conversation with the agencies and their US counterparts on the executive summary.

"Any redactions sought there were done on national security grounds in a way we would have done with any other report."

And yet on Wednesday, the day the CIA report was published, the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman, when asked what redactions had been sought, repeatedly said: "None whatsoever, to my knowledge."

The admission comes after the head of the CIA John Brennan described the techniques used to extract information as "abhorrent".

The Senate report had detailed the US intelligence agency's "brutal" treatment of al Qaeda suspects in a network of secret prisons around the world.

On Wednesday night, former President George W Bush's Vice President Dick Cheney robustly defended the programme, which included forms of torture such as "waterboarding".

Andrew Tyrie, the Conservative MP who founded the All Party Group on Extraordinary Rendition, said a judge-led inquiry is now essential as public trust in the security services is at risk of being corroded.

"The Senate's report, and the further reports of redactions, greatly strengthen the case for a full and detailed inquiry into allegations of British facilitation of kidnap and torture, led by a judge," he said.

"The ISC has been handed back this task. Given the difficulties they faced in 2007, that is a huge challenge.

"Until that work is completed, until the scope and limits of our involvement are known, allegations – whether true or not - will continue to be made, corroding public confidence.

"We cannot know what, if any, of the material redacted might be of legitimate public concern. Until a full inquiry is completed, it will continue to be claimed that some of it is."

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