“It’s not the case that torture always produces false information and actually it’s clear that torture can contribute to saving lives, but I don’t think that’s the point,” she said at the recording of her second BBC Reith lecture in Leeds. “The point is that it is not something that is right, legal and moral to do.”

She added: “I don’t agree with all the claims that the American people make, some of the statements are exaggerated but I don’t want to get into specifics.”