Peter Goldsmith, the Attorney General (the government’s chief legal officer) at the time of the invasion of Iraq is giving evidence to the Chilcott Inquiry today. His advice to former prime minister Tony Blair has been the subject of great controversy ever since it was given.
The Chilcot Inquiry is the third investigation into aspects of the decision to go to war. Despite being allowed a wider remit than Butler and Hutton, not all official documents are being disclosed to the inquiry. It is believed some of these undisclosed documents include paperwork from Peter Goldsmith’s advice to the PM on the legality of the war. The lawyer’s advice famously changed from ‘No, the war is not legal’, to ‘Yes, it is’ as the deadline for British involvement in the US led invasion approached.
