Profile: Why Sir Alan wants to prove that he's no patsy

No one saw Sir Alan Budd as a political giant killer.

His donnish reputation seemed assured 10 days ago when his inquiry into the David Blunkett affair was almost concluded without, apparently, uncovering any damning facts.

But, according to Whitehall observers, Budd showed a steely side to his nature. Suddenly, he decided to re-interview about five key civil servants. His persistence paid off with the discovery of the "killer email" that proved Leoncia Casalme's visa was indeed fast-tracked.

There followed a torrent of disclosure: first, the proof that a "request" was faxed from the Home Secretary's office, then a letter telling the nanny her visa application would take a year. But it is typical of this quietlyspokenman, say former colleagues, that instead of going off to write a report, he decided to approach Mr Blunkett ahead of publication.

When he asked to see the former minister last Tuesday it was not to demand answers but merely to inform him of what he had found. Within a day, Mr Blunkett had resigned.

Having claimed Mr Blunkett's scalp, it appears that Sir Alan then began toning down the criticism in his final report. The word was that he had decided "cock up rather than conspiracy" was to blame for much of the nannygate furore.

When Sir Alan, 67, was appointed, critics saw him as a paid-up member of the Great and Good who would obligingly give the benefit of the doubt to Blunkett and his officials. He is Provost of The Queen's College, Oxford and sits on innumerable committees where his dry wit rarely ruffles feathers. He is married with three sons.

One former colleague from the Treasury was John Gieve, now at the Home Office and the man who commissioned him to head the inquiry. This was another factor that led to predictions of a whitewash. Instead the word around Whitehall is that Mr Gieve's head is now on the block.

Some believe Sir Alan was stung by the unflattering portraits of an establishment patsy and was determined to produce a report that would advertise his independence, no matter who was damaged.