Anthony Albanese says missing Iraq War cabinet documents should not have been withheld
Cabinet documents from the 2003 Iraq war have sparked an inquiry into whether they were kept secret in error or intentionally. The prime minister says they should've been handed to the national archives by the Morrison Government. Experts say it's in the public interest, to show the reasons the former Howard Government decided to go to war.
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00:00 The start of 2024.
00:06 Well happy new year everyone.
00:08 With a focus on 2003.
00:11 Australians have a right to know the basis upon which Australia went to war in Iraq.
00:20 Australians lost their lives during that conflict and we know that some of the stated reason
00:26 for going to war was not correct.
00:29 In terms of the weapons of mass destruction that was alleged Iraq had at that time.
00:43 Previously secret cabinet documents from 20 years ago were released this week but most
00:48 of the Howard government's conversations about the war weren't included.
00:53 The Prime Minister questioning why they weren't handed over, whether then Morrison government
00:58 was required to do so three years ago.
01:01 Some 78 cabinet records were not transferred to the National Archives.
01:07 We need transparency and there is a need for the release of these documents.
01:12 They've since been located.
01:14 Administrative oversight due to the outbreak of COVID-19 has been blamed for the error.
01:19 They'll be released after they've been vetted for ongoing national security concerns.
01:24 Look it's vitally important for any democracy to know why decisions were taken by government
01:30 so that future governments and the public can learn from them and also to hold policy
01:36 makers to account.
01:37 So it's essential for any democracy to do that.
01:41 A review by the Prime Minister's department is underway to determine whether the documents
01:45 were kept secret in error or whether they were intentionally covered up.
01:50 The outcome will be known in a few weeks but it's likely to be months before the documents
01:55 are made public.
01:56 [BLANK_AUDIO]