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Conservatives support government's position on BAE case

12/04/2008

The Conservatives have backed the government's position that it had the right to end an investigation into the BAE Systems case.

Shadow attorney general Dominic Gieve has been cited by the Guardian newspaper as saying that the attorney general acted appropriately when deciding that the inquiry into whether bribes were paid to secure the defence contract with Saudi Arabia should go no further.

He said: "We believe the existing system, by which the attorney is responsible for the public interest in deciding whether or not a prosecution should be discontinued because of national security issues, should continue. The attorney is accountable to parliament for her actions and her decision can be challenged in the courts if made unreasonably or capriciously."

During Tony Blair's premiership, previous attorney general Lord Goldsmith dropped a Serious Fraud Office investigation into the case. In statements made at the time, the government insisted that the inquiry could jeopardise vital anti-terrorism cooperation with Saudi Arabia and was not in the country's national interest.

This week, the high court ruled that the decision to drop the case was an "outrage" as the government had given into "blatant threats" from the Saudi government.

In its ruling the court said: "No one, whether within this country or outside, is entitled to interfere with the course of our justice. It is the failure of government and the defendant to bear that essential principle in mind that justifies the intervention of this court."

The Liberal Democrats have criticised the government's decision to end the inquiry with party leader Neil Clegg saying there was a "pressing need" for the corruption case to be pursued.