All four recruits died from shotgun wounds

In his first written apology to the parents of Welsh soldier Cheryl James, who died in 1995, the minister also conceded that the MoD could have been 'quicker to instigate' a wider review of its training systems and the analysis of the risks facing young recruits.

Mr Hoon, in a reply to an earlier letter by Des and Doreen James, suggested that an inquest into James Collinson, the last soldier to die at the camp, could be extended by the coroner to include all four of the Deepcut deaths.

This, explained Mr Hoon, could be a 'wide-ranging and thorough examination' of the issues the Deepcut families want to see covered by a public inquiry.

In the letter, Mr Hoon said: "I accept that a number of valid criticisms have been levelled at the Ministry of Defence and the Army by Surrey police and others.

"Our relations with you and your wife, and the other families involved, have not always been handled well, and I apologise unreservedly for this once again.

"It is also fair to say that we could have been quicker to instigate the wider review of our training systems and the analysis of the risks to which our young recruits are exposed.

Mr Hoon is accused of having an 'air of arrogance' in his letter.

The minister added, "The Surrey Coroner has yet to convene an inquest into the death of Private Collinson. It is, of course, for the coroner to determine the scope of the investigation, but the courts have made it clear that coroners can, and should, ensure that juries reach a conclusion on all of the central issues of a case.

"It would also, as I understand it, be quite within the coroner's powers to extend the inquest into Private Collinson to cover all four deaths, if he thought there was reason to do so.

"There is therefore the prospect that the forthcoming inquest could be wide-ranging and thorough examination of precisely the kind of issues you would wish to see covered by a public inquiry."

THE RECRUITS WHO DIED Sean Benton, 20, from Hastings, East Sussex, 1995 Cheryl James, 18, from Froncysyllte, north Wales, 1995 Geoff Gray, 17, from Seaham, County Durham, 2001 James Collinson, 17, from Perth, Scotland, 2002

He added that Armed Forces minister Adam Ingram would meet Mr and Mrs James shortly to discus the way ahead following a damning report of the army by Surrey police last month.

Mr James, from Llanymynech, near Welshpool, mid Wales, said: "Geoff Hoon, the MoD and the Government are terrified of the embarrassment which could come out in an independent public inquiry, especially after the allegations of brutality in Iraq."

"There's an air of arrogance in the letter too when Mr Hoon says he knows what the issues are and he knows how to deal with them.

"Unless they allow a transparent, independent inquiry how do they know what the issues were and if they've disappeared or not?

Mr James wrote to Mr Hoon after his response to the Westminster Hall debate last month about Deepcut.

Mr Hoon used the occasion to apologise to familes but ruled out a public inquiry.

Mr and Mrs James, formerly of Froncysyllte, near Llangollen, north Wales, have made several appeals for a public inquiry, but to no avail.

The Surrey coroner has not yet set a date for the inquest.

The recruits aged 17 to 20 died at Deepcut Barracks between 1995 and 2002. Their deaths were recorded as suicide at the original inquests.

MPs on the Commons Defence Committee are holding an inquiry into the wider issues, while Surrey Police have put together five reports following inquiries into the deaths.

Meanwhile, Geoff Gray, father of Private Geoff Gray, told the BBC that he was "incandescent" that Mr Hoon had written to just one of the Deepcut families.

Mr Gray is demanding an explanation to why the other families have not received a similar letter.

A Ministry of Defence spokeswoman said Mr Hoon wrote to Mr and Mrs James because they had written to him raising a number of points.