July 7, 2003 BBC

BBC governors have defended its news team in the row with the government over claims Number 10 "sexed up" a dossier on Iraqi weapons.

They called on Downing Street's director of communications Alastair Campbell to withdraw his allegations that the BBC's reporting of the Iraq war was biased based on a largely anti-war agenda.

The statement came ahead of the foreign affairs select committee's publication of its findings of its investigation into the government's presentation of the case for war.

BBC chairman Gavyn Davies said the corporation had never accused Tony Blair of lying or of trying to take Britain into war under misleading or false pretences, in a statement released after governors met senior BBC executives to discuss the dossier row.

We call on Mr Campbell to withdraw these allegations of bias against the BBC and its journalists

BBC chairman Gavyn Davies

But the bitter confrontation looks sets to continue as Downing Street replied by saying the BBC was "still trying to defend the indefensible".

Earlier Tony Blair accused the BBC of seriously attacking his integrity as prime minister by its story claiming the September intelligence dossier on Iraqi weapons had deliberately exaggerated the military threat at No 10's request.

He told the Observer: "You could not make a more serious charge against a prime minister."

And Mr Campbell told BBC political editor Andrew Marr: "The prime minister does regard this as a fundamental attack on his integrity and that won't change because of the posturing of the BBC."

Impartial reporting

BBC defence correspondent Andrew Gilligan first sparked the row after he reported on BBC Radio 4's Today programme that a senior intelligence official had told him Downing Street had asked that extra prominence was given to a claim Iraq could launch weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes.

Mr Campbell said on Sunday governors had still failed to answer "the fundamental question" of whether this story was "true or false".

Mr Campbell: BBC is defending the indefensible

Andrew Marr said: "Everybody's blood is up. And it is going to go on for a very long time to come."

Governors concluded the overall coverage of the war in Iraq and political issues surrounding it had been fair and impartial, following their two-hour briefing from director general Greg Dyke and senior executives in London.

'Exceptional circumstances'

They accepted some of Today's coverage could have been handled better, including giving No 10 more warning about the story and keeping a clearer account of its dealings with the Ministry of Defence.

Mr Davies said "exceptional circumstances" allowed for stories to be based on a single source.

"It was in the public interest to broadcast Mr Gilligan's story, given the information which was available to BBC News at the time," he said.

He noted government denials were broadcast on Today within 90 minutes of the report followed by a defence minister's denials.

Governors said BBC journalists and managers had sought to maintain impartiality and accuracy.

But the chairman said governors would re-examine rules for BBC reporters and presenters writing for newspapers" after Mr Campbell complained to BBC News.

In a letter to BBC director of news Richard Sambrook, Mr Campbell referred to Mr Gilligan "writing as a BBC journalist in three publications