Blair to be grilled on Iraq intelligence flaws

British Prime Minister Tony Blair will face further questions about Britain's intelligence failings over the US-led Iraq war as he attends a parliamentary debate on the Butler inquiry on Tuesday.

Blair, who still defends his decision to launch the war together with the United States, was expected to clash during the debate with Michael Howard, leader of the major opposition Conservative Party.

Howard was reportedly to concentrate on the Butler inquiry's findings and would also widen his attack on Blair to the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by British troops and the alleged lack of preparedness for the reconstruction of the country.

The debate comes after Lord Butler, who led an independent inquiry into Britain's intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction that was behind Blair's decision to join the US-led war against Iraq, ruled last week that the government's prewar intelligence on Iraq was unreliable and untrustworthy.

Blair's appearance before the lawmakers on Tuesday comes as an ICM poll suggested that a majority of voters think he lied over Iraq .

The survey, conducted days after the publication of the Butler report, said 55 percent of those questioned thought Blair had lied about the case for war.

Source: Xinhua