A GROUP of senior British and Northern Ireland MPs have accused British prime minister Gordon Brown and the Northern Secretary Shaun Woodward of preventing them from scrutinising a key report on the Omagh bombing.
The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of the House of Commons in a special report published today has complained that over a period of six months, committee chairman Sir Patrick Cormack was constantly denied legitimate access to a special report by the UK’s intelligence services commissioner Sir Peter Gibson.
Sir Patrick said he was prepared to read the report on his committee’s behalf and to keep the contents secret, but that such access was refused.
“It really is an insult to the select committee that its chairman should not be allowed to see this report,” he said.
The Gibson report examined allegations by BBC’s Panorama programme last September that the electronic intelligence gathering agency, GCHQ, failed to pass on vital telephone-intercept evidence promptly enough to either prevent the Omagh bombing or subsequently assist the police in apprehending the bombers.
Sir Peter Gibson issued a report in January rejecting the claims. He found that in the days surrounding the bombing “any relevant intelligence” was shared with the RUC and Special Branch promptly and fully.
