I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that the intelligence was genuine.

The world is a better place with Saddam in prison not in power.

I don't concede it at all that the intelligence at the time was wrong.

The intelligence is clear: (Saddam) continues to believe his WMD programme is essential both for internal repression and for external aggression.

The view we took at the time and we take it now is that the war was justified legally because he [Saddam Hussein] remained in breach of UN resolutions.

Retreat might give us a moment of respite but years of repentance at our weakness would, I believe, follow.

We promise that the events of 1991 will not happen again - we have pledged to remove Saddam and we will deliver

We are asked now seriously to accept that in the last few years-contrary to all history, contrary to all intelligence-Saddam decided unilaterally to destroy those weapons. I say that such a claim is palpably absurd.

If we don't act now, then we will go back to what has happened before and then of course the whole thing begins again and he carries on developing these weapons and these are dangerous weapons, particularly if they fall into the hands of terrorists who we know want to use these weapons if they can get them.