Gilligan urged 'margin for error'

Mr Gilligan made controversial claims about the government

Andrew Gilligan said reporters should be given a "margin for error" when it came to issues of public interest, in a late submission to Hutton's inquiry.

The BBC defence correspondent also insisted he had never accused the government of lying.

In spite of errors, he said his report on the BBC's Today programme on 29 May "accurately reported the burden of what Dr Kelly had told him".

"There has to be a latitude - a margin for error," his submission said.

The document was released along with Lord Hutton's report into the death of Dr David Kelly - the weapons expert who apparently committed suicide after coming forward as a source for Mr Gilligan's story.

It urges Lord Hutton not to focus to narrowly on any inaccuracies.

THE HUTTON REPORT Full Report (PDF file 2MB) Hutton report in full (html version) Chapter 12: Summary The BBC's late submission The Kelly family's late submission

And it says the inquiry hearings had given "unwarranted" emphasis to the comment the government "probably knew" its claim Iraq's weapons of mass destruction could be used within 45 minutes.

"Particular words and phrases should not be picked out from a transcript for detailed forensic examination that distorts the effect of the words at the time."

But in his report Lord Hutton branded the allegation as "unfounded".

The submission also says the law did not require a "standard of perfection" from reporters.

It adds: "It is important to have in mind that in the context of political reporting, it can be right to report matters, even if it later turns out that they are untrue."

All the main players in the inquiry put in late submissions after the close of the public hearings.