FRIENDS of Home Secretary Jack Straw hit back today at claims that he had deserted his post by not making yesterday's statement to MPs on the latest blunders to dog the Stephen Lawrence inquiry.

Several newspapers attacked the Blackburn MP for leaving the job to his Minister of State Paul Boateng.

He was forced to apologise for the errors which led to the naming of informants and witnesses in the Macpherson Report into the killing.

And he was also left to express Mr Straw's regret at the fact that the police camera protecting Stephen's memorial at the London bus stop where he died had been replaced by a dummy when it was vandalised hours after the report's publication.

But allies of Mr Straw said he had done nothing wrong and that his absence was cleared by the Opposition and Speaker Betty Boothroyd in advance. The refusal to detail his whereabouts was purely for security reasons.

One close aide told the Lancashire Evening Telegraph: "He had a long standing personal commitment which he honoured. He had to go out of the country. "Before honouring that commitment, he consulted his Tory shadow Sir Norman Fowler and the Speaker to ensure that this was considered appropriate.

"They agreed that Paul Boateng should make the statement and that Sir Norman's deputy John Greenway should respond.

"Paul Boateng is the Home Office Minister of State responsible for the police. He is a London MP.

"He has played a key part in the Government's response to the Lawrence Report. He is fully aware of all the issues in the inquiry and has had a long association with the Metropolitan Police.

"He was eminently qualified to set out the Government's position on this issue to MPs."

Another friend said that the position set out by Mr Boateng was that spelled out by Mr Straw as the news of the fiasco broke - that they regretted the blunders but they were not the responsibility of the Home Office. Inquiry chairman Sir William Macpherson has accepted blame for publishing the names of the informants by accident.

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