Tony Blair finally joined the wave of condemnation surrounding Saddam Hussein's execution yesterday as Downing Street made it clear the Prime Ministers believed the manner of his death was "completely wrong".
Number 10 issued a statement hours after Mr Blair's likely successor, Gordon Brown, declared that the hanging
was "deplorable" as he set out his plans for a new style of Government when he takes over the reigns of power.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer told the BBC's Sunday AM programme: "Now that we know the full picture of what happened, we can sum this up as a deplorable set of events. It is something, of course, which the Iraqi Government has now expressed its anxiety and shame at. It has done nothing to lessen tensions between the Shia and Sunni communities.
"Even those people, unlike me, who are in favour of capital punishment found this completely unacceptable and I am pleased that there is now an inquiry into this and I hope lessons in this area will be learnt, as we learn other lessons about what has happened in Iraq."
Mr Brown's comments came as senior ministers added their voices to the controversy over Saddam's execution.
Patricia Hewitt, the Secretary of State for Health, said the treatment of Saddam was "very shocking".
Mr Blair has so far declined to comment personally on the affair promising to talk about Iraq this week.
But he has looked increasingly isolated as senior cabinet ministers and opposition leaders have joined the international chorus of disgust at the scenes revealed by illicit footage of Saddam's death.
Yesterday Downing Street officials insisted that Mr Blair would comment "at a time of his choosing". But a spokeswoman sat out his thoughts for the first time.
She said: "We have made it clear he supports the inquiry by the Iraqis and he does believe the manner of the execution was completely wrong."
But she added: "This should not lead us to forget the crimes of Saddam Hussein and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis."
Sir Menzies Campbell, the Liberal Democrat leader, said the episode showed Mr Blair had lost all authority.
He said: "We have a constitutional novelty. A Prime Minister with responsibility and no authority and a Chancellor with authority but no responsibility. How can this dysfunctional Government conduct the affairs of the country?"
Mr Brown's wide-ranging interview took the New Year slot previously reserved for party leaders.
- INDEPENDENT
