Chilcot, who leads the Iraq Inquiry, had complained publicly in an open letter that his committee was being delayed by a failure to agree on publication of notes sent to President Bush by Tony Blair.
However, The Independent newspaper recently reported that “good progress” has now been made towards declassifying many of these records. “The intention is to be as open as possible,” it quoted a government source as saying. “There is an ongoing process of declassification, which is attempting to strike a careful balance to ensure that you are not setting a legal precedent that could oblige you to publish other documents in the future or damage national security.”
Under current rules, the final decision on what to publish belongs to Heywood, without the involvement of the prime minister or deputy prime minister. Newspapers report that he has now agreed to publish redacted versions of the memorandums.
A Cabinet Office spokeswoman said that: “The Government is currently engaged in discussions with the [Iraq] inquiry which the inquiry recognises raises difficult issues, including legal and international relations issues.”
“These issues are being worked through in good faith and with a view to reaching a position as rapidly as possible. The inquiry should be allowed to publish its findings and we should not pre-empt the content of the report.”