Brian Francis Gill Jones (24 August 1944 – 10 February 2012) was a UK metallurgist who worked as an intelligence analyst, was skeptical of claims of Iraqi WMD and gave evidence concerning the justification for the Iraq war.
Intelligence career
Jones was a
metallurgist
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys.
Metallurgy encompasses both the sci ...
by training who worked for many years in the technical branches of the UK
Ministry of Defence
{{unsourced, date=February 2021
A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...
. He specialised initially in the effects of radiation on the integrity of metals, particularly in the construction of nuclear reactor pressure vessels. From 1987 until his retirement in 2003, he worked in the technical branch of the
Defence Intelligence Staff
Defence Intelligence (DI) is an organisation within the United Kingdom intelligence community which focuses on gathering and analysing military intelligence. It differs from the UK's intelligence agencies ( MI6, GCHQ and MI5) in that it is an ...
, specialising in
counter-proliferation
Counterproliferation refers to diplomatic, intelligence, and military efforts to combat the proliferation of weapons, including both weapons of mass destruction (WMD), long-range missiles, and certain conventional weapons. Nonproliferation and a ...
of
weapons of mass destruction
A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to numerous individuals or cause great damage to artificial structures (e.g., buildings), natur ...
. He was credited for being sceptical of the WMD claims regarding Iraq.
Evidence
Having spent most of his career in the deliberately low-profile world of nuclear energy and then in intelligence work, he came to public notice in the summer of 2003 when, shortly after his retirement from the MoD, he gave evidence to the
Hutton Inquiry
The Hutton Inquiry was a 2003 judicial inquiry in the UK chaired by Lord Hutton, who was appointed by the Labour government to investigate the controversial circumstances surrounding the death of Dr David Kelly, a biological warfare expert an ...
, which was set up following the death of Dr David Kelly to investigate allegations that the so-called "
dodgy dossier
''Iraq – Its Infrastructure of Concealment, Deception and Intimidation'' (more commonly known as the ''Iraq Dossier'', the ''February Dossier'' From pages 35–42 o"The Decision to go to War in Iraq: Ninth Report of Session 2002-03" (PDF). or th ...
" of material was published by the government of
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of the ...
in order to justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In his report, Lord Hutton reported that Jones' concerns over the '45 minute' claims had not been considered by either the then
Chief of Defence Intelligence
Defence Intelligence (DI) is an organisation within the United Kingdom intelligence community which focuses on gathering and analysing military intelligence. It differs from the UK's intelligence agencies ( MI6, GCHQ and MI5) in that it is an ...
Joe French
Air Chief Marshal Sir Joseph Charles French, (born 15 July 1949), often known as Sir Joe French, is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer who was the last Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief RAF Strike Command (2006–07).
RAF career
French joi ...
or the Joint Intelligence Committee.
Following his retirement and appearance before the Hutton enquiry, Jones went on to give evidence to both the
Butler Review
The Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction, widely known as the Butler Review after its chairman Robin Butler, Baron Butler of Brockwell, was announced on 3 February 2004 by the British Government and published on 14 July 2004. It ...
and the
Chilcot Inquiry
The Iraq Inquiry (also referred to as the Chilcot Inquiry after its chairman, Sir John Chilcot)Sir John Chilcot as his evidence to that enquiry.
Post retirement
Following his retirement, Jones returned to academia, becoming a Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Mountbatten Centre for International Studies at
Southampton University
, mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour
, type = Public research university
, established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...
; he also lectured at the
Royal United Services Institute
The Royal United Services Institute (RUSI, Rusi), registered as Royal United Service Institute for Defence and Security Studies and formerly the Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies, is a British defence and security think tank. ...
in London.
Jones died on 10 February 2012 following a short illness.
Jones became the subject of a BBC Radio 4 drama in March 2013. He was played by
Richard E Grant
Richard E. Grant (born Richard Grant Esterhuysen; 5 May 1957) is a Swazi-English actor and presenter. He made his film debut as Withnail in the comedy ''Withnail and I'' (1987). Grant received critical acclaim for his role as Jack Hock in Mari ...