No 10 to tighten rules on intelligence

New safeguards to prevent a repeat of the Iraq weapons intelligence debacle are to be unveiled by Downing Street.

In a fresh bid to draw a line under the missing weapons affair before the election, Tony Blair is to usher in sweeping reforms of Whitehall. They will end his informal "sofa style" of government, with meetings in the run-up to the Iraq war held without proper records kept.

There will be stricter rules on how vital intelligence from MI6 and other agencies is dealt with. The moves will come in the No 10 response to last year's highly critical inquiry by Lord Butler.

Whitehall sources told the Standard Mr Blair has accepted all the inquiry's main recommendations. He is keen to show he is dealing directly with the faults exposed over the war intelligence, believing voters will react positively if he admits errors - though not, he will insist, bad faith.

A key pledge will be to keep the full Cabinet better informed about such grave decisions. Lord Butler was scathing about the lack of written information to ministers

outside Mr Blair's inner circle, saying this "reduced the scope for informed collective judgment".

The report said too many Cabinet discussions were based on oral presentations which left ministers no time to think deeply about what they were deciding. In future, more written reports will be circulated in advance.

There were other discussions in Mr Blair's "den" where vital decisions were made but records were not properly kept.

Downing Street is also expected to give reassurances that intelligence is being more rigidly scrutinised for errors and poor quality sources. MI6 has been given more funds after it was found Nineties budget cuts led to "weaknesses" in internal safeguards.

The Butler inquiry found only one MI6 source on Saddam Hussein's weapons had direct knowledge. Others passed on hearsay or were dissidents whose accounts should not have been trusted.

MI6's most infamous claim was that Iraq had illegal munitions ready to fire at 45 minutes' notice - a claim published by Downing Street despite weapons experts warning it made no sense.

Saddam is now thought to have got rid of his stockpiles up to a decade ago.