Minister rejects Chinook rethink

Twenty-nine people died in the crash

A plea to set aside a verdict blaming two pilots for a fatal Chinook helicopter crash has been rejected by Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon.

The minister was lobbied on Tuesday by former defence secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind.

But after the meeting in London Mr Hoon said the case would only be re-examined if new evidence was brought forward.

The Chinook crashed on the Mull of Kintyre six years ago, killing all 29 people on board, but the controversy surrounding the tragedy has refused to go away.

Geoff Hoon: No change in position

A Royal Air Force board of inquiry blamed the two pilots - saying they were guilty of gross negligence.

But persistent doubts have been raised about the helicopter's mechanical reliability.

At the weekend, the senior officer who wrote the report, Air Chief Marshall Sir William Wrattan strenuously defended the MoD's findings.

However, Sir Malcolm said there were compelling reasons for the verdict to be looked at again - and on Tuesday he met Mr Hoon to try to convince him of that.

He said: "On the basis of equity and fairness to the two pilots concerned, I think it's not a question of whether Air Marshall Wrattan and his colleagues were wrong, it's a question of whether there is enough doubt to the responsibility for the accident to justify setting aside the verdict."

'No new evidence'

But Mr Hoon was resolute there would be change in the government's stance.

He said: "I remain to be persuaded that it is necessary to reopen the inquiry.

"A very careful examination of the facts reached certain conclusions and I remain willing to look at any new evidence, indeed if there is any new evidence I would encourage anyone, including Sir Malcolm, to bring it forward.

"In the absence of that new evidence I don't see that it is easy to justify why we should reopen the inquiry."

A cross party pressure group has been set up to try to get the verdict overturned and campaigners are now considering directly lobbying Prime Minister Tony Blair.