'Hoon thrust Kelly into spotlight'

Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon intervened personally to thrust weapons expert David Kelly into the public spotlight over his contacts with BBC journalists, it emerged today.

Lord Hutton's inquiry into the scientist's death heard that Mr Hoon had overruled his own officials, who had not wanted Dr Kelly to face a televised grilling from MPs.

The session at the hands of the foreign affairs select committee was held just days before Dr Kelly died. His boss at the Ministry of Defence, Bryan Wells, told the inquiry that the scientist - like any civil servant in such circumstances - found the grilling a "pressurised event".

In dramatic evidence from Dr Wells, the inquiry also heard how Dr Kelly was pursued with phone calls right up to the time of his death. The calls were an attempt to check with the scientist details of departmental answers to questions from MPs about his contacts with journalists.

At 3pm on 17 July, the inquiry heard, Dr Kelly told his wife he was going for a walk near their Oxfordshire home. He had been called by Dr Wells that morning, and the two men had last spoken at 1pm.

But further attempts were made to contact him and, late in the afternoon, Dr Wells heard from colleagues that Dr Kelly was not answering his phone.

"At around 6pm I called David's mobile myself," Dr Wells said.

"He had got into the habit in recent times of checking the number coming in. He would have instantly recognised it as mine."

"Did it ring?" asked counsel for the inquiry James Dingemans QC. "It rang," Dr Wells replied, "but I did not receive an answer." Hours later, the weapons expert was reported missing and his body was found next day.

Dr Kelly was stressed, nervous and tense in the days just before his death, the

inquiry was told this afternoon.

Patrick Lamb, deputy head of counter-proliferation at the Foreign Office, who described himself as "colleague and friend" spoke of their last conversation.

"He was clearly very nervous," he said referring to Dr Kelly's imminent appearance before the foreign affairs committee. He had called Dr Kelly after a colleague had told him that he thought he was under stress.

Mr Lamb was concerned that Dr Kelly could face disciplinary action and might even lose his pension rights. "He assured me that that wasn't the case and I told him, 'In that case, David, the worst is over. You have no more to fear.'"

Dr Kelly had told him he recognised that the " superstructure" of BBC defence correspondent Andrew Gilligan's controversial report on the Iraqi weapons dossier could have been created from their conversation - but was adamant that he had not used the words used by the BBC reporter.

The inquiry heard how, in a memo dated 10 July, the MoD's permanent secretary Sir Kevin Tebbit had recommended that the scientist should appear before the intelligence and security committee, which meets in private, but not the foreign affairs committee. But Mr Hoon effectively countermanded this.

In an email from Mr Hoon's office to that of Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Mr Hoon's private secretary argued that "presentationally" it would be difficult to draw a distinction between the two committees and not to allow Dr Kelly to be grilled in public.

Dr Wells admitted Dr Kelly had shown "some concern" about his appearance before the foreign affairs committee. But the scientist had said: "If I'm asked I will do it."

The inquiry also heard how, in a letter handed to Dr Kelly on 14 July, the scientist was told that - if any further information emerged about his contact with Mr Gilligan - he would open himself up to the prospect of disciplinary action.