Wednesday 7 July 2010

Talk about dog eat dog: Oborne on Riddell


Peter Oborne in the Daily Mail today is scathing about the appointment of former Times' journalist Peter Riddell to the tribunal that will investigate allegations of British complicity in the torture and abuse of terror suspects.
Oborne writes: "A second member of the tribunal, Peter Riddell, is a retired journalist from the Times newspaper who, five years ago, published a book celebrating Tony Blair’s relationship with George W. Bush and the U.S. — by coincidence at almost exactly the moment the worst of the alleged torture abuses were taking place.
"Riddell, though a cheerful and popular figure, has never been known for the kind of forensic investigation and harsh scrutiny this inquiry surely requires. Many will surmise that this is exactly why he was appointed.
"Meanwhile the Times, for which Mr Riddell worked for many years, has given only perfunctory coverage to the numerous revelations about British complicity over the past few years.
"Though regarded with amiable fondness by senior Whitehall and intelligence figures, Peter Riddell has not yet demonstrated any of the toughness or readiness to challenge the Whitehall establishment this investigation requires." Ouch!

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