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| PM 'repulsed' at bomber welcome | PM 'repulsed' at bomber welcome |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Gordon Brown has said he was "repulsed" by the welcome given to the Lockerbie bomber on his return to Libya. | Gordon Brown has said he was "repulsed" by the welcome given to the Lockerbie bomber on his return to Libya. |
| In his first comments since the freeing of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, Mr Brown said he was "angry" about the jubilant scenes as he left the plane in Tripoli. | In his first comments since the freeing of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, Mr Brown said he was "angry" about the jubilant scenes as he left the plane in Tripoli. |
| Mr Brown said he had had "no role" in the Scottish government's decision to liberate Megrahi, and declined to say whether or not he supported the move. | Mr Brown said he had had "no role" in the Scottish government's decision to liberate Megrahi, and declined to say whether or not he supported the move. |
| Opposition leaders have accused the PM of a "deafening silence" on the issue. | Opposition leaders have accused the PM of a "deafening silence" on the issue. |
| Megrahi, found guilty of killing 270 people in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, received a rapturous welcome in Tripoli last week and later met Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. | Megrahi, found guilty of killing 270 people in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, received a rapturous welcome in Tripoli last week and later met Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. |
| British officials previously revealed they had written to the Libyan government urging that Megrahi be given a low-key reception. | |
| 'Absolutely clear' | 'Absolutely clear' |
| Mr Brown said: "I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya." | Mr Brown said: "I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya." |
| He added that he had made it "absolutely clear" to the Libyan leader when they met in July at the G8 summit in Italy that the decision was a matter for the Scottish government alone. | He added that he had made it "absolutely clear" to the Libyan leader when they met in July at the G8 summit in Italy that the decision was a matter for the Scottish government alone. |
| I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya Gordon Brown Bomber document release promised | I was both angry and I was repulsed by the reception that a convicted bomber guilty of a huge terrorist crime received on his return to Libya Gordon Brown Bomber document release promised |
| He said the UK could not interfere in what was a "quasi-judicial process" and could have "no control over the final outcome". | He said the UK could not interfere in what was a "quasi-judicial process" and could have "no control over the final outcome". |
| Mr Brown stressed that his "first thoughts" were with the families of victims of the Lockerbie atrocity but said he was still committed to working with countries such as Libya to fight terrorism. | Mr Brown stressed that his "first thoughts" were with the families of victims of the Lockerbie atrocity but said he was still committed to working with countries such as Libya to fight terrorism. |
| "I want to make it absolutely clear, however, that whatever decision was made on compassionate grounds by the Scottish Parliament, our resolve to fight terrorism is absolute." | "I want to make it absolutely clear, however, that whatever decision was made on compassionate grounds by the Scottish Parliament, our resolve to fight terrorism is absolute." |
| He added: "Our determination to work with other countries to fight and to root out terrorism is total, and we want to work with countries - even countries like Libya, who have renounced nuclear weapons now and want to join the international community - we want to work with them in the fight against terrorism around the world." | |
| The Scottish National Party administration's decision to approve Megrahi's release has been condemned by the relatives of some Lockerbie victims and by politicians in Edinburgh, Westminster and Washington DC. | The Scottish National Party administration's decision to approve Megrahi's release has been condemned by the relatives of some Lockerbie victims and by politicians in Edinburgh, Westminster and Washington DC. |
| 'Leadership failure' | |
| For the Conservatives, shadow foreign secretary William Hague said it was "astonishing" Mr Brown had taken so long to comment on the matter and was not prepared to address the question of whether Megrahi's release was justified. | |
| "I think it's part of a continuing failure of leadership that he is unable to say that he will defend the decision, or that he wasn't happy with it," he said. | |
| "The prime minister ought to be more forthright about this decision." | |
| Ministers have denied the decision to free Megrahi, who served seven years of his life sentence for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, was linked to trade deals with Tripoli. | Ministers have denied the decision to free Megrahi, who served seven years of his life sentence for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, was linked to trade deals with Tripoli. |
| The Conservatives have called for notes of recent meetings between government ministers and their Libyan counterparts to be released to prove that the decision was not influenced by "commercial considerations". |