Blair 'must resign' say Tories

Blair must have known what was happening, say the Tories

Tony Blair's position is untenable following Dr David Kelly family's attack on the way his government treated the dead scientist, according to the Conservative leader.

Iain Duncan Smith said Dr Kelly had been deliberately hounded by the government as he was named as the suspected source of the BBC's Iraq dossier story and by efforts to "destroy his reputation".

The prime minister "must have known" what was happening and had been guilty of an "act of cowardice" by failing to put a stop to it, he argued.

"Most people looking at this will be disgusted," said the Tory leader.

He said the government's handling of the affair had "besmirched the political process".

'Position untenable'

On the closing day of the Hutton inquiry into Dr Kelly's death, his family's QC, Jeremy Gompertz, accused the government of "duplicity" and "hypocrisy" in its treatment of the scientist.

Mr Duncan Smith accused government officials of "lying, spinning and cheating" before and after Dr Kelly's death.

He told BBC News 24: "At every stage, it is incredible to believe that the prime minister didn't know what was going on...

Mr Duncan Smith: Situation a disgrace

"He chairs key meetings, he literally spends hours of his day with [media chief] Alastair Campbell, talking to [Defence Secretary] Geoff Hoon.

"He knew and in knowing that frankly he acted indecently.

"He should have stopped it. He should have said 'This is ridiculous, it's got out of all control, it's time to stop, let's pause.'.

"He didn't do that and by not doing that he carries a huge charge of guilt for what then subsequently happened.

"I think that alone makes his position untenable. I think this whole situation has been a disgrace."

'Unfair' criticism

Earlier, Liberal Democrat leader Charles Kennedy used his party conference speech to say the Hutton inquiry into Dr Kelly's death had already been "a devastating indictment of Labour in power".

Mr Blair has refused to comment on the inquiry until Lord Hutton reports, which he aims to do in late November or December.

But the government's barrister at the inquiry on Thursday said it would be "exceptionally unfair to lay the blame for what has happened at the door of Dr Kelly's colleagues and superiors in the MoD or, indeed, elsewhere in government".

Jonathan Sumption QC said the government had been entitled to defend itself against a "scandalous" claim in the BBC report and in any case would not have been able to prevent Dr Kelly's name becoming public.

It was impossible to say whether any other approach to the affair would have been any better, said Mr Sumption.