'MoD blunders put troops at risk'

A damning report today said British troops were at "severe" risk in Iraq because the MoD failed to supply them with chemical suits and other vital equipment.

Soldiers would have been killed if Saddam Hussein really had possessed working chemical or biological armaments, concluded the Commons Defence Committee.

Other "serious shortcomings" at the frontline caused by MoD blunders included ammunition, machineguns, body armour and desert clothing.

The report, after a year-long inquiry, is a blow to Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon. With other senior ministers, he stands accused of failing to prepare early enough because the Government wanted to avoid giving the impression that war was inevitable.

The all-party group praised troops for operating "very close to the maximum they could sustain".

"Had the Iraqis used chemical weapons systematically the operational consequences would have been severe," said the MPs.