By Matthew Champion.
Gordon Brown has once again attempted to draw a line under the release of the Lockerbie bomber by insisting there 'no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double dealing and no private assurances'.
The prime minister had faced calls to 'come clean' on the release of Abdelbaset Ali Al Megrahi, despite correspondence between the UK and Scottish governments on the issue being published yesterday.
The documents released on Tuesday revealed that the prime minister did not want Megrahi to 'pass away in prison'.
On Wednesday Mr Brown tried to distance himself from reports the Westminster government pressurised its Edinburgh counterpart to release Megrahi on the basis of oil and trade deals with Libya.
He said at a youth jobs summit in Birmingham that bringing Libya into the international fold in the fight against international terrorism was the 'dominant feature' of UK-Libyan relations, not commercial interests.
Recalling a recent meeting with Muammar Gaddafi at the G20 summit in L'Aquila, Mr Brown said he had told the Libyan leader the decision was one 'solely for the Scottish government'.
But Mr Brown did not offer an explanation for claims he and foreign secretary David Miliband did not want Megrahi to pass away in prison.
He did appear, however, to say his public silence on the issue was aimed at removing 'further unnecessary suffering' of the families of the Lockerbie victims and force Libya into not including Megrahi in independence celebrations like the 'despicable scenes' witnessed when the bomber returned home to a hero's welcome.
'No UK influence'
The Ministry of Justice and Foreign and Commonwealth Office published on their websites on Tuesday a raft of letters between British and Scottish ministers in order to draw a line under the row over Westminster involvement in the release of Megrahi.
The terminally-ill 57-year-old was freed on compassionate grounds eight years into a life sentence for the death of 270 people on board Pan Am flight 103 in 1988.
London and Edinburgh have insisted throughout that the decision to release the Libyan was entirely down to Scottish justice secretary Kenny MacAskill amid reports of interference from Westminster over trade deals with Tripoli.
But minutes posted on the Scottish executive website from a meeting with Libyan officials revealed that then Foreign Office minister Bill Rammell had told them that neither Mr Brown nor foreign secretary Mr Miliband wanted Megrahi to die in prison.
Responding to the claims on Wednesday, Mr Rammell said in a statement: 'Neither the Libyans or the Scottish executive were left in any doubt throughout this entire process that this was a decision for the Scottish executive over which the UK government sought no influence.
Responding to the claims on Wednesday, Mr Rammell said in a statement: 'Neither the Libyans or the Scottish executive were left in any doubt throughout this entire process that this was a decision for the Scottish executive over which the UK government sought no influence.
'I made it clear in all my dealings with the Libyans that the decision around Megrahi was exclusively one for the Scottish executive and the Scottish executive alone.'
Dying in prison?
Appearing on the Today programme, he admitted telling Libyan officials the stance of Mr Brown and Mr Miliband; but denied discussing the issue with the two men themselves.
'I was responding to the Libyan Europe minister's concern about dying in prison,' Mr Rammell said.
'In specific response to that concern I said we were not actively seeking his death in prison but would not and could not intervene in a decision that was for Scottish ministers.'
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Edward Davey said that the documents 'raise more questions than they answer'.
'The prime minister must come clean on whether his government told the Libyans he did not want to see Megrahi die in prison,' he said. 'It would be disgraceful if he felt able to share his feelings on this case with a dictator but not with the British public.'
Conservative party leader David Cameron has called for an independent inquiry into the way ministers behaved surrounding the Megrahi case.
'There are complexities in this and the way to deal with that is to have a brief inquiry led - I would argue - by a former permanent secretary, to look at all of the paperwork, all of the meetings, all the things that were said and to produce a short report so we can see what the British government has been doing in our name,' he argued.
'That needs to be done. This has now been dragging on for week after week. I think the government has been incompetent in dealing with it.'
Appearing on the Today programme, Mr Miliband denied that the Scottish government had been pressured into making a decision.
'The Scottish National party government in Edinburgh has no reason to be kind to the Labour government in London,' he said.
But the foreign secretary added: 'We did not want him to die in prison; we were not seeking his death in prison.
'The prime minister met and told Colonel Gaddafi that he could not instruct or give comfort about the Megrahi conclusion.
'We had to live with the decision but we didn't have to make the decision.'
Mr Brown is yet to comment since the letters were published. He is expected to face questions on the issue later today.
Gordon Brown has once again attempted to draw a line under the release of the Lockerbie bomber by insisting there 'no conspiracy, no cover-up, no double dealing and no private assurances'.
The prime minister had faced calls to 'come clean' on the release of Abdelbaset Ali Al Megrahi, despite correspondence between the UK and Scottish governments on the issue being published yesterday.
The documents released on Tuesday revealed that the prime minister did not want Megrahi to 'pass away in prison'.
On Wednesday Mr Brown tried to distance himself from reports the Westminster government pressurised its Edinburgh counterpart to release Megrahi on the basis of oil and trade deals with Libya.
He said at a youth jobs summit in Birmingham that bringing Libya into the international fold in the fight against international terrorism was the 'dominant feature' of UK-Libyan relations, not commercial interests.
Recalling a recent meeting with Muammar Gaddafi at the G20 summit in L'Aquila, Mr Brown said he had told the Libyan leader the decision was one 'solely for the Scottish government'.
But Mr Brown did not offer an explanation for claims he and foreign secretary David Miliband did not want Megrahi to pass away in prison.
He did appear, however, to say his public silence on the issue was aimed at removing 'further unnecessary suffering' of the families of the Lockerbie victims and force Libya into not including Megrahi in independence celebrations like the 'despicable scenes' witnessed when the bomber returned home to a hero's welcome.
'No UK influence'
The Ministry of Justice and Foreign and Commonwealth Office published on their websites on Tuesday a raft of letters between British and Scottish ministers in order to draw a line under the row over Westminster involvement in the release of Megrahi.
The terminally-ill 57-year-old was freed on compassionate grounds eight years into a life sentence for the death of 270 people on board Pan Am flight 103 in 1988.
London and Edinburgh have insisted throughout that the decision to release the Libyan was entirely down to Scottish justice secretary Kenny MacAskill amid reports of interference from Westminster over trade deals with Tripoli.
But minutes posted on the Scottish executive website from a meeting with Libyan officials revealed that then Foreign Office minister Bill Rammell had told them that neither Mr Brown nor foreign secretary Mr Miliband wanted Megrahi to die in prison.
Responding to the claims on Wednesday, Mr Rammell said in a statement: 'Neither the Libyans or the Scottish executive were left in any doubt throughout this entire process that this was a decision for the Scottish executive over which the UK government sought no influence.
Responding to the claims on Wednesday, Mr Rammell said in a statement: 'Neither the Libyans or the Scottish executive were left in any doubt throughout this entire process that this was a decision for the Scottish executive over which the UK government sought no influence.
'I made it clear in all my dealings with the Libyans that the decision around Megrahi was exclusively one for the Scottish executive and the Scottish executive alone.'
Dying in prison?
Appearing on the Today programme, he admitted telling Libyan officials the stance of Mr Brown and Mr Miliband; but denied discussing the issue with the two men themselves.
'I was responding to the Libyan Europe minister's concern about dying in prison,' Mr Rammell said.
'In specific response to that concern I said we were not actively seeking his death in prison but would not and could not intervene in a decision that was for Scottish ministers.'
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Edward Davey said that the documents 'raise more questions than they answer'.
'The prime minister must come clean on whether his government told the Libyans he did not want to see Megrahi die in prison,' he said. 'It would be disgraceful if he felt able to share his feelings on this case with a dictator but not with the British public.'
Conservative party leader David Cameron has called for an independent inquiry into the way ministers behaved surrounding the Megrahi case.
'There are complexities in this and the way to deal with that is to have a brief inquiry led - I would argue - by a former permanent secretary, to look at all of the paperwork, all of the meetings, all the things that were said and to produce a short report so we can see what the British government has been doing in our name,' he argued.
'That needs to be done. This has now been dragging on for week after week. I think the government has been incompetent in dealing with it.'
Appearing on the Today programme, Mr Miliband denied that the Scottish government had been pressured into making a decision.
'The Scottish National party government in Edinburgh has no reason to be kind to the Labour government in London,' he said.
But the foreign secretary added: 'We did not want him to die in prison; we were not seeking his death in prison.
'The prime minister met and told Colonel Gaddafi that he could not instruct or give comfort about the Megrahi conclusion.
'We had to live with the decision but we didn't have to make the decision.'
Mr Brown is yet to comment since the letters were published. He is expected to face questions on the issue later today.
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