Thirteen peers yesterday added their voices to calls for an independent inquiry into allegations about Britain's role in the torture and extraordinary rendition of terror suspects.
The group, with representatives from all main parties and prominent crossbenchers, includes Lord Howe, foreign secretary in the Thatcher government, Lord Guthrie, former chief of defence staff, and significantly, also Lord King of Bridgwater, a former Conservative defence and Northern Ireland secretary, who was the first chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC).
The peers say only an independent inquiry can hold to account those who break British and international law.
King's support suggests he does not believe the ISC can perform the task. It emerged this week that the government had rejected a recommendation by the ISC almost four years ago that Britain should reach formal agreements with other countries on "methods and standards for the detention, interviewing, or interrogation of people detained in future operations".
It has also emerged from high court hearings into the alleged torture of Binyam Mohamed, the UK resident recently released from Guantánamo Bay, that MI5 and MI6 officers in Afghanistan warned in 2002 that detainees were not treated "with the appropriate standards".