The events of September 11 have plunged Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon into the limelight. IAN LLOYD caught up with him during a visit to Hendon and discussed Britain's role in the war on terrorism.

It was hardly surprising he slipped in unnoticed. A melee of anti-war protesters waited with bated breath to grill Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon upon his arrival at Hendon Town Hall.

"One-two-three-four, we don't want your racist war; five-six-seven-eight, stop the bombing stop the hate," sang the campaigners. Their sentiments fell on not so much deaf as absent ears. Mr Hoon was already in the building. It was probably a wise move on a day that three American Special Forces soldiers were killed north of Kandahar by a bomb dropped from one of their own warplanes.

"I don't see any reason to confront them," said Mr Hoon before a question and answer session with Barnet Labour Party members on Wednesday last week. "They have their point of view and not surprisingly mine is very different. I think they are wrong because we have taken action, in fact, to preserve their ability to be able to demonstrate. We have taken action to defend the kinds of values that are central to our way of life and indeed to countries all around the world.

"Bear in mind that we waited very many weeks before taking that reaction and that a series of ultimata were given to the Taliban regime they clearly knew what was going to follow if they did not hand over Osama Bin Laden. They chose not to hand him over and I think we had little choice other than to seek to bring him to account, which is what we are still doing."

An inevitable consequence of war is that there will be casualties, something the protesters outside the town hall on Wednesday night were at pains to point out.

"The actions taken by Mr Hoon and by Bush and Blair are escalating a very dangerous world situation," said Miranda Dunn, of Barnet Green Party.

"As far as I can see their attitude and desire to crush all opposition has back-fired but I don't think they are concerned with the lives of individual soldiers and the risk they are placing our troops and individual citizens under."

Raj Perera, who set up an anti-war group at Barnet College, said: "It is not a war on terrorism it's a war against the poorest nation in the world and about asserting US power in the region."

It certainly is a war that will ultimately cost hundreds of millions of pounds. The Treasury has already agreed to stump up an extra £100million for our war effort.

"I don't have an up-to-date figure on how much the war is costing," said Mr Hoon. "I assure you that we make our decisions on the best military advice not according to how much it costs."

While shying away from potential targets, Mr Hoon hinted the spotlight could turn to other countries in the fight to wipe out terrorism.

"I am not ruling out the possibility of other action not necessarily military action against other states who have harboured or supported Al Qaeda but I think it is important to bear in mind that our focus military is on Afghanistan. Our action there sends a very clear message to any other government that is tempted to support terrorism, how seriously we take this."

But he does not regard the war as timeless. "I am obviously planning on being successful and any successful campaign has a conclusion. That conclusion will be when we have won."

December 12, 2001 18:10

IAN LLOYD