Almost 30 years ago, Ian McEwan's debut novel THE CEMENT GARDEN faced charges of plagiarism by critics suggesting the book's plot bore a suspicious resemblance to another book published 15 years before. Nothing was proved and the matter was dropped. But the specter of those long-ago accusations has returned in the wake of new allegations that McEwan made liberal use of a wartime memoir by noted romantic fiction writer Lucilla Andrews (who died last month at the age of 86) for his novel ATONEMENT.

McEwan told The Times last night (in a response reprinted by the Guardian) that his conscience was 'absolutely clear' and that it was almost impossible for a writer not to face accusations of copying at some point. He described Andrews' 1977 memoir as a unique historical document that had helped him to recreate the atmosphere of a wartime hospital, but denied that Andrews was the basis for one of his main characters. "When you write a historical novel you do depend on other writers," he said. "I have spoken about Lucilla Andrews countless times from a public plaftform. It has always been a very open matter."Vanessa Holt, her agent, said that she had found McEwan's behaviour discourteous and disappointing. "She wasn't approached for permission to use her autobiography - I think she would have been very happy to have been consulted."