Difference between revisions of "John Williams"
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| − | John Williams was head of PR for three | + | {{person |
| + | |constitutes=propagandist | ||
| + | |nationality=UK | ||
| + | |description=UK spindoctor who was head of PR for three successive [[UK Foreign Secretaries]] at the [[FCO]] and wrote the first draft of the infamous "[[Dodgy Dossier]]" | ||
| + | |website= | ||
| + | }}'''John Williams''' was head of PR for three successive [[UK Foreign Secretaries]] at the [[FCO]] and wrote the first draft of the government "[[Dodgy Dossier]]" which claimed that [[Iraq]] has [[WMD]]. | ||
| − | :Mr Williams, press secretary to three foreign secretaries, said that the dossier would show how wrong the Blair team was about Saddam's alleged possession of WMD. Mr Williams said: "The argument was that here was someone who had been known to possess illegal weapons. We regarded him as a threat." He added: "The document will show the mindset that everyone had. It was wrong and we know that now." | + | ==Dodgy dossier== |
| + | {{FA|Dodgy Dossier}} | ||
| + | :Mr Williams, press secretary to three foreign secretaries, said that [[Dodgy Dossier|the dossier]] would show how wrong the Blair team was about Saddam's alleged possession of WMD. Mr Williams said: "The argument was that here was someone who had been known to possess illegal weapons. We regarded him as a threat." He added: "The document will show the mindset that everyone had. It was wrong and we know that now." | ||
:The Government has yet to decide whether to publish the draft dossier, in line with an information tribunal judgment last month. Ministers have insisted that the dossier was entirely the work of intelligence agencies, but Mr Williams's role remains unclear. Mr Williams denies that he came up with the claim that Saddam could have launched a WMD strike within 45 minutes. He said: "I was a member of the team looking at it.... I used the available information to write it, but [intelligence chief] John Scarlett was then commissioned to write it instead."<ref>Ian Griggs and Brian Brady [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dodgy-dossier-was-wrong-its-author-says-783374.html 'Dodgy dossier' was 'wrong', its author says] Independent on Sunday, 17 February 2008</ref> | :The Government has yet to decide whether to publish the draft dossier, in line with an information tribunal judgment last month. Ministers have insisted that the dossier was entirely the work of intelligence agencies, but Mr Williams's role remains unclear. Mr Williams denies that he came up with the claim that Saddam could have launched a WMD strike within 45 minutes. He said: "I was a member of the team looking at it.... I used the available information to write it, but [intelligence chief] John Scarlett was then commissioned to write it instead."<ref>Ian Griggs and Brian Brady [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dodgy-dossier-was-wrong-its-author-says-783374.html 'Dodgy dossier' was 'wrong', its author says] Independent on Sunday, 17 February 2008</ref> | ||
| + | Wlliams later stated that "I wish I had never drafted the dossier, but I trusted Blair on Iraq - after all, he'd been right on Kosovo".<ref>http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/feb/18/foreignpolicy.iraq</ref> | ||
| + | {{SMWDocs}} | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
<references/> | <references/> | ||
[[Category:British Propaganda|Williams, John]] | [[Category:British Propaganda|Williams, John]] | ||
Latest revision as of 17:01, 24 December 2022
 John Williams  (propagandist) | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | UK |
UK spindoctor who was head of PR for three successive UK Foreign Secretaries at the FCO and wrote the first draft of the infamous "Dodgy Dossier" | |
John Williams was head of PR for three successive UK Foreign Secretaries at the FCO and wrote the first draft of the government "Dodgy Dossier" which claimed that Iraq has WMD.
Dodgy dossier
- Full article: Dodgy Dossier
- Full article: Dodgy Dossier
- Mr Williams, press secretary to three foreign secretaries, said that the dossier would show how wrong the Blair team was about Saddam's alleged possession of WMD. Mr Williams said: "The argument was that here was someone who had been known to possess illegal weapons. We regarded him as a threat." He added: "The document will show the mindset that everyone had. It was wrong and we know that now."
- The Government has yet to decide whether to publish the draft dossier, in line with an information tribunal judgment last month. Ministers have insisted that the dossier was entirely the work of intelligence agencies, but Mr Williams's role remains unclear. Mr Williams denies that he came up with the claim that Saddam could have launched a WMD strike within 45 minutes. He said: "I was a member of the team looking at it.... I used the available information to write it, but [intelligence chief] John Scarlett was then commissioned to write it instead."[1]
Wlliams later stated that "I wish I had never drafted the dossier, but I trusted Blair on Iraq - after all, he'd been right on Kosovo".[2]
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References
- ↑ Ian Griggs and Brian Brady 'Dodgy dossier' was 'wrong', its author says Independent on Sunday, 17 February 2008
- ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2008/feb/18/foreignpolicy.iraq
