British coroner will not resume Kelly inquest

A British coroner today ruled that the inquest into the death of government weapons expert Dr David Kelly is not to be reconvened…

A British coroner today ruled that the inquest into the death of government weapons expert Dr David Kelly is not to be reconvened.

The body of Dr Kelly (59) was found at a beauty spot near his Oxfordshire home in July, just days after he was exposed as the source of a BBC report that alleged the British government had "sexed up" intelligence on Iraq and its reported weapons of mass destruction.

Oxfordshire coroner Mr Nicholas Gardiner, said at a special hearing today that there were no exceptional circumstances to justify reconvening the inquest into the weapons expert's death.

His ruling follows a representation from Mr Jeremy Gompertz QC, representing Dr Kelly's family, who told the coroner that in the view of the family there were no exceptional reasons to justify such a move.

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The inquest into Dr Kelly's death was adjourned last year under Section 17A of the 1998 Coroner's Act while the Hutton Inquiry was taking place.

Mr Gompertz told the court the Kelly family accepted Lord Hutton's findings "as to the mode and approximate cause of Dr Kelly's death".

"The family is however disappointed that Lord Hutton did not consider more fully the extent to which the state of mind in which Dr Kelly took his own life was induced by the failings of the Ministry of Defence in the exercise of the duty of care owed to him as his employer", he added.

PA