[A-List] Iraq: the plunder continues, rather exclusively

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

It's not just the Spanish who are being denied a piece of the action,
despite their government's loyalty. Here's our very own Tony grovelling
before Dubya (again) for some crumbs from the table.

-----

Leak reveals ministers' fears over Iraqi contracts

Campaign to stop British firms being cut out by US

Terry Macalister
Friday February 13, 2004
The Guardian

The British government, concerned about the failure of British companies to
win reconstruction work in Iraq, is making a behind-the-scenes effort to
lobby Washington.

Confidential documents seen by the Guardian show that ministers and
officials are being mobilised to try to head off a domestic political
embarrassment to Tony Blair.

Brian Wilson, the prime minister's special representative on overseas trade,
and Mike O'Brien, the minister of international trade and foreign affairs,
are both being dispatched to Washington next week.

Mr O'Brien is breaking off a family holiday in America to talk to US
officials in the run-up to a new round of Iraq contracts being awarded next
month.

Briefing papers seen by the Guardian reveal the frustration at the top of
government over British companies missing out completely on the Iraqi oil
rehabilitation deals on January 16.

"Despite extensive lobbying by ministers and officials for significant UK
content in these projects, none of the UK bids (from AMEC, Foster Wheeler
and the Wood Group) were successful," says a note attached to other
documents from Gregor Lusty, head of the Iraq unit at UK Trade & Investment,
an arm of the Department of Trade and Industry.

In another document Mr O'Brien asks the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, and
other officials to do all they can to ensure that UK companies do not miss
out again.

"All ministers in the government who are in frequent touch with their US
opposite numbers [need] to ensure that the US administration are in no doubt
about the political importance we attach to UK firms being seen to
contribute actively to the reconstruction process," it says.

The US Army Corps of Engineers is about to evaluate 17 new prime contracts
for Iraqi reconstruction in a range of areas, including security, buildings
and communications.
Among the British companies on the shortlist are BT, Carillion and Mowlem,
which are mainly bidding with American partners. Project management
contracts are to be awarded in the first week of March and design and build
contracts in the third week.

Mr Wilson confirmed last night that he was going to Washington in advance of
these critical decisions to put the case for Britain plc, but denied that
there was any sense of anger about it.

"Everyone understands the American approach to this. As long as they are
paying there is going to be a strong presumption in favour of their own
companies," he said.

"However, within those parameters there are substantial opportunities for
British companies to contribute to that reconstruction effort on the basis
of proven expertise.

"There is no doubt that the Iraqis want British companies to be involved,"
he added.

The failure of leading British companies to make real headway in Iraq is a
sensitive issue for Mr Blair and the government, which had to struggle to
win domestic political support for the toppling of Saddam Hussein.

Making billions of pounds out of the rebuilding would provide some kind of
financial compensation for Britain standing side by side with America during
the assault.

But the US has been handing out billion-dollar contracts to such companies
as the Texas-based engineering giant Hal liburton and the Californian
company Fluor, both of which have close links with the Republican party.

Dick Cheney, the US vice-president, was head of Halliburton before he went
to the White House.

A spokesman for UK Trade & Investment said it would be wrong to suggest that
British companies had failed to win a substantial amount of business.

He could not give financial details - saying that companies rarely let it
know the size of any contracts they won- but he cited Serco winning an
airport contract and Mowlem obtaining a £3m hotel deal as examples of
British success. Critics pointed out that these were tiny contracts compared
with the $2bn deal that AMEC lost to Fluor in January.

"We are not doing badly in Iraq but obviously it's something we have to keep
working on and bids are now in for the next round of contracts," the
spokesman added.

The briefing documents circulating in Whitehall also reveal that there are
practical difficulties with a new system of security passes which could be
damaging the chances of British firms working in Iraq.