Tri-Service

IHAT Team Members Fired For Sleeping On The Job And Lying On CV

It's emerged tonight that some members of the Iraq Historial Allegations Team were sacked for falling asleep on the job and lying on their CV.

The revelations came as MPs grilled the people in charge.

It follows concerns over the way the investigations have been carried out, with some soldiers complaining of misconduct.

There were some heated exchanges in the House of Commons, when a group of MPs from the Defence Committee questioned the two men heading up the Iraq Historic Allegations Team, the IHAT.

Director Mark Warwick and Deputy Cdr Jack Hawkins were forced to defend complaints from service personnel about the way they've been treated by IHAT investigators.

Cdr Hawkins admitted about five investigators had been sacked in the last four years, because their work wasn't good enough.

Cdr Hawkins also admitted that at least one soldier was written to inappropriately, on non-headed paper.

A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said:

"Our Armed Forces are rightly held to the highest standards and credible serious allegations of criminal behaviour must be investigated. An independent investigation is the best way to make sure that innocent personnel are not dragged through international courts without cause, leaving the door open to a lengthy, and costly public inquiry."

Since the IHAT was established Cdr Hawkins confirmed that it's received 3,300 allegations of abuse. Seven hundred are in the process of being closed down.

He said by next summer, only sixty serious cases would remain on the books.

This committee hearing came about because the Iraq Historical Allegations Team, set up in 2010, has come under fire for perceived “hounding” of military personnel who served in Iraq.

The team's reputation has been tarnished by reports that law firms have been cashing in, bringing the bulk of the cases.

The Al Sweady inquiry, set up to examine multiple claims of abuse, torture and even murder of Iraqi civilians by British troops, collapsed after the law firm behind the allegations Public Interest Lawyers was accused of misconduct.

The Committee heard that almost all the cases on its books were brought by either Public Interest Lawyers or Leigh Day.

The Defence Committee MPs also raised questions about the staff conducting the investigations. Many are ex-civilian police officers, with no understanding of the stress and challenges of a war-zone, provided by recruitment firm Red Snapper at a cost of £5 million a year.

Of the 176 investigations completed or nearing completion so far, just four have prompted further action, with one successful prosecution. The cost has reached nearly £35 million.