With Liam Fox back on the Christmas party scene, his old chum Adam Werritty has popped up in this week’s Speccie, speaking about the whole saga for the first time. Apparently “one man’s ‘clandestine’ meeting is another man’s informed and fascinating discussion”. The whole thing is well worth a read, and there are other gems such as “I’m all for a free press and responsible journalism. But…” Apparently the whole thing was a “storm in a teacup” and  he will spending New Year’s Eve with Liam, and his wife…

Werritty’s side of the story, while interesting, does not really take in the gravity of the situation:

My story starts on an evening in Dubai six months ago when my then girlfriend and I ended up in an American steak house called Ruth’s Chris. Out of the many thousands of eateries in the city, we couldn’t have made a worse choice. Five minutes after we sat down, a British expat businessman named Harvey Boulter arrived on the table opposite us. I’d met him once before, but I had no intention of meeting him on this trip. However, out of politeness I said hello. The rest is history — and a history which I very much regret.

We stayed on after dinner as Boulter wanted to talk to me about Cellcrypt, his mobile phone encryption software technology. When we first met several months earlier, he’d discussed making it available to British troops in Afghanistan, free of charge, to enable them to make free ‘welfare’ calls home. A worthwhile idea, I thought, and one worth supporting. I mentioned to him that I was meeting my friend Liam Fox the next day — he asked if he could talk to Liam about Cellcrypt over a coffee. I passed on his request, and the next day the meeting went ahead. Big mistake. I ought to have left it firmly to official channels to handle. They exist for a reason — specifically, to ensure that full and accurate records of conversations and meetings can be kept.

…

I’ve been asked on several occasions why I didn’t apply to be a special adviser. The answer: I actually know very little about defence policy and have never pretended otherwise. Why should I be paid by the taxpayer for an expertise I didn’t possess?”

That’s not what it said on his business card…