2000-plus invited to Thatcher's funeral

Details of more than 2,000 guests being invited to Baroness Thatcher's funeral were issued Thursday - including all her former Cabinet ministers, ex-US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Downing Street said. No 10 released information about the ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral as Lady Thatcher's old political adversary Lord Kinnock revealed he would not be attending. Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and Nancy Reagan have also said health problems will prevent them attending next Wednesday - but Lord Heseltine, who was her main rival and political opponent in the Conservative party will be there. Number 10 said the guest list had been drawn up by Lady Thatcher's family and representatives with the assistance of the Government and the Conservative Party. More than 2,000 invitations are expected to be printed today and sent out tomorrow. Altogether 2,300 people are set to pack St Paul's. A spokeswoman said: "Those invited include family and friends of Lady Thatcher, those who worked with her over the years, including all surviving members of her Cabinets, former Chiefs of Staff, Conservative associates, peers and MPs, members of the Cabinet, foreign associates and dignitaries and representatives from the wide range of groups she was associated with. "In agreement with Lady Thatcher's representatives, around 200 states, territories and international organisations are being invited to send an official representative to the funeral service. "We have invited those countries and institutions with whom we have normal diplomatic relations. In addition, there are invitations being made in a personal capacity to some current and former world leaders as well as others from overseas who had a close connection to Baroness Thatcher." The service will begin at 10 am GMT after Lady Thatcher's body has travelled from Parliament with full military honours. A representative of former South African president Nelson Mandela - whose ANC Lady Thatcher once described as a terrorist group - has been invited. The invitations will be colour coded depending on the importance of the guest. VIP versions are white with red or green stripes and recipients will be seated under the dome of the cathedral. Other colours designate different areas of seating. Meanwhile, David Cameron has described some reaction to Lady Thatcher's death as "pretty distasteful." The Prime Minister said he thought that the overriding national feeling was to grieve for the loss of a great leader, but conceded that sections of society did not agree.