THE Government plans to refuse requests under the new Freedom of Information Act to release copies of the Attorney-General’s advice on the legality of the Iraq war.

The chambers of Lord Goldsmith, the Attorney-General, will have received a large number of requests for copies of the advice when they reopen tomorrow.

Media organisations, including The Times, lawyers and peace campaigners have been preparing official applications to see the papers.

Lord Falconer, the Lord Chancellor, said he believed that the Attorney’s legal advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet was not covered by the new legislation.

“Each application will be looked at on a case-by-case basis, but there is an exemption, subject to the public interest, for the law officers’ advice,” Lord Falconer told the BBC. “Is there any organisation in the world that releases the advice that it gets from its lawyers to the public? I think not.

“The public should know the facts, the figures on which you make decisions, but there needs to be space in which to govern as well.”

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