MI6 HQ, London

The intelligence services have put in place new procedures aimed at preventing a repeat of the failings over Iraqi weapons of mass destruction.

In a written Commons statement, the foreign secretary said that the new structures were also being backed by extra resources.

The changes were prompted by the Butler review of the intelligence available prior to the Iraq war, which found a range of failings across Britain's security apparatus.

The Conservatives said the moves were an admission that the government had undermined confidence in intelligence.

New procedures

Jack Straw confirmed that the Secret Intelligence Service, also known as MI6, had "developed new procedures, provided additional resources and revised line management arrangements to improve evaluation and to oversee the quality of intelligence reporting".

It was also revealed that the joint intelligence committee, which was at the centre of the row over the the Iraq weapons of mass destruction dossier, had "reviewed and tightened up" its procedures.

"A confidential guide for readers of intelligence, including information on the limitations of intelligence, has been produced and distributed," added the statement.

The number of assessment staff is also to be expanded by "about one third".

"Lord Butler's review has contributed greatly to the process underway to fit the UK's intelligence community for the future," said Straw.

"The government recognised the need to move substantially to implement its conclusions and has done so."

'Too little, too late'

Responding to the developments, shadow foreign secretary Michael Ancram said it was "too little, too late".

"They are an admission that for the last eight years Tony Blair's style of leadership has undermined integrity and trust in government and the civil service, but they do not address the key issue," he added.

"The prime minister did not give a truthful account of the intelligence he received before going to war in Iraq, and then tried to blame the intelligence services for the subsequent fall out and he has consistently refused to face up to this or apologise for it.

"The sad fact is if we had to go to war again, the British people would find it hard to trust this prime minister."

Using intelligence

A guide for readers of intelligence has also been circulated within government.

An unclassified version warned that intelligence "may by its nature be fragmentary or incomplete".

"It needs to be evaluated in respect of the reliability of the source and the credibility of the information in order to allow a judgement to be made about the weight to be given to it," said the document.

"Assessment should put intelligence into a sensible real-world context and identify elements that can inform policy-making."

It added: "There are limitations, some inherent and some practical on the scope of intelligence, which have to be recognised by its ultimate recipients if it is to be used wisely.

"The most important limitation is incompleteness. Much ingenuity and effort is spent on making secret information difficult to acquire and hard to analyse.

"Although the intelligence process may overcome such barriers, intelligence seldom acquires the full story.

"Even after analysis it may still be, at best, inferential."