'hampered by Clare Short'

Iraq humanitarian effort 'hampered by Clare Short'

5 July 2010 Chilcot inquiry hears that Sally Keeble, deputy to international development secretary, claimed her decisions were disastrous

Former international development secretary Clare Short. Photograph: PA

The extent to which Britain's role in helping Iraqis after the invasion was sabotaged by upheaval within the Blair government was exposed today as it emerged that decisions by Clare Short, the international development secretary, had been described at the time as "disastrous" by her deputy.

Stinging criticism of Short's department was disclosed in declassified documents to the Chilcot inquiry as it heard evidence from Sally Keeble, Short's deputy at the Department for International Development (DfID) who was unseated in Northampton North at the general election. The documents help to explain extremely hostile comments about Short and her department made earlier to the inquiry by British military commanders.

In a letter to Tony Blair in June 2003, three months after the invasion, Keeble set out what she called her "misgivings" about DfID's performance in dealing with the humanitarian consequences of the military operation. Keeble added: "My concern is that if there is ever a situation like this again, the government cannot have a repeat of that performance."

Short persistently made clear she opposed the invasion, but did not resign until eight weeks later, on 12 May 2003. In evidence to the inquiry in February, she accused Blair of lying to her and misleading parliament in the build-up to the invasion.

Short said the British and US armies failed to honour their Geneva convention responsibilities to keep order, describing the situation in the post-invasion aftermath as "mad", with food for refugees only being ordered at the last minute. Continued