9-11 and the subsequent Iraq War were the key geopolitical events of my early adult life. The death of Dr David Kelly, the weapons inspection scientist pulled into the heart of the Blair/Campbell dossier scandal, was one of the most shocking domestic incidents during the build up to the vote for war.
I distinctly remember hearing the breaking news of David Kelly’s death and immediately thinking “my god they killed him” – a dreadful indictment of the state of mine (and I believe the wider nation’s) trust in the government at that point.
This book explores the background to his death and the subsequent Hutton Inquiry. There are numerous aspects that are definitely strange: the speed at which an inquiry was setup and Hutton chosen as the judge (within hours of Kelly’s body being discovered), objections from numerous experts that a full inquest should have taken place, varying reports of the position in which the body was found, etc.
The book is somewhat frustrating in that rather than simply letting these objective facts and discrepancies speak for themselves, it often falls into tabloid-esque conspiracy and rumour; not a huge surprise give the author writes for the Daily Mail but a missed opportunity.
