Tory leader faces party unrest over hawkish line

Iain Duncan Smith is facing growing criticism from senior members of his own party over his hawkish support for America over Iraq.

As many as half of Conservative MPs are said to be sceptical about the prospect of war, with many believing that the Government has done too little to provide evidence to justify military action.

The Shadow Cabinet has yet to hold a detailed discussion of the party's stance on Iraq, fuelling criticism of the party leader's decision to fall squarely behind Washington hawks.

One member said there were reservations about Britain's strategy "at all levels of the party". He added: "There are people concerned about the domestic politics of the issue; the Liberals have been able to position themselves as the main opposition on this."

MPs say their post bags are full of anti-war comments from constituents, and many fear that Mr Duncan Smith's hard line on Iraq has left the Opposition with little room for manoeuvre.

One senior Tory MP said: "Tony Blair can get away with what he is doing at the moment because he knows he has the Tory front bench with him. I don't believe he has the whole Conservative Party behind him."

* The former Labour MP Tony Benn will visit Baghdad next week in an attempt to meet Saddam Hussein. The Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, has told Mr Benn, who met President Saddam in 1990 in an attempt to avert the last Gulf War, that he may he granted an interview.

"The purpose is to explore the prospects for peace," Mr Benn said. "That is why I went in 1990 and it is important now when you hear America speaking about weeks not months. We hear President Bush and Tony Blair every day but we don't hear from Saddam Hussein."