From the Press Association:
BLAIR TO MEET CHINOOK CAMPAIGN MPs
By Joe Churcher, Chief Parliamentary Reporter, PA News
Prime Minister Tony Blair today agreed to meet MPs campaigning to clear the names of the pilots of an RAF Chinook helicopter which crashed, killing top counter-terrorism experts. But despite John Major - who occupied 10 Downing Street at the time - joining calls for the negligence verdict to be overturned, Mr Blair said he could make no promises.
Mr Blair said he was prepared to meet an all-party group and "look at it in the light of what has been said by the previous Prime Minister. But I give no guarantees that we will change that particular decision. There was a decision taken at the time that was then endorsed by this Government as well.
However, I understand the very strong feeling there is, not least in respect of the families of the pilots concerned, and I am very happy to meet an all-party group. But that has to be done without any prior commitment or guarantee as to what the outcome would be.''
All 29 passengers and crew died in the accident over the Mull of Kintyre ten years ago. An RAF board of inquiry concluded that the pilots, Flight Lieutenants Jonathan Tapper and Richard Cook, were guilty of gross negligence in crashing the helicopter in thick cloud cover. It ruled that the helicopter was flying too fast and too low when the pilots attempted to take emergency action to avoid a steep hillside.
Last month, Mr Major wrote in a newspaper article that "no evidence existed that either pilot - both of whom died in the crash - was negligent''.
His comments came after Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Mr Major's defence secretary at the time, also called for the verdict to be set aside.
The RAF judgment has been the only official verdict into the accident, although a number of inquiries - including reviews by the Commons Defence Committee and a House of Lords special select committee - have disagreed with the ruling.
A 1996 fatal accident inquiry held at the Sheriff Court in Paisley also concluded that it was not possible to be certain of the cause of the crash.
The helicopter was flying from RAF Aldergrove in Ulster to a security conference and passengers included a senior MI5 officer and leading Special Branch officers.
Mr Blair had been pressed at question time by Tory James Arbuthnot (Hampshire NE), who said a meeting should be held to "bring fairness and a conclusion to this matter''.
End
Regards,
Brian
"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook