Mandelson: forced resignation

The prime minister probably hasn't helped matters by refusing to comment on exactly why the minister resigned, insisting he is not prepared to go over old ground.

And his spokesman would only state: "Peter left the government in January, the circumstances are well known to you. What happened then, happened. It was and is a tragedy for Peter that this happened.

"We have no intention of going over the arguments again. The government is moving on."

But the stonewalling raised allegations from opposition MPs that either Mr Blair had shown a huge lack of judgement in sacking his friend, or there is more to the case than has so far been revealed.

Told an untruth

The other minister who will be under the spotlight as a result of the report's findings is Home Secretary Jack Straw.

Mr Straw was clearly instrumental in the prime minister's decision to dump Mr Mandelson.

And, in the wake of the resignation, he said that Mr Mandelson had gone because he had told an "untruth".

That centres on claims that Mr Mandelson had personally telephoned Home Office minister Mike O'Brien about Mr Hinduja's passport application.

Mr O'Brien said he clearly remembers the call while Mr Mandelson initially said he did not make such a call, then later changed his story.

Campbell needed to breif press

The report concludes that Mr Mandelson's belief that he had made no such call was "honestly held." In other words the call may indeed have taken place, but Mr Mandelson had forgotten it.

Mr Straw, however, claims to have reminded Mr Mandelson twice about the phone call just days before he insisted he had no recollection of it.

Finally, Tony Blair's official spokesman Alastair Campbell will also face criticism for his role in the sacking.

It is claimed that he was so worried about negative headlines and so eager to brief waiting journalists on the affair that he helped bounce the prime minister into the sacking.

What all this amounts to is that the report has left some of the key questions at the centre of the affair unanswered because they fell outside the terms of the inquiry.

And there are just too many loose ends for this to slip quietly into the background - no matter how hard the prime minister refuses to answer questions.