Citing a senior defence source, the BBC and the Times newspaper said the pull-out was planned to begin in March if provincial elections in January passed off peacefully.

Other newspapers also reported that the withdrawal would start in March, six years after the US-led invasion of Iraq. Britain, Washington's main ally in the 2003 ouster of Saddam Hussein, still has some 4,000 troops in southern Iraq.

Responding to the reports, an MOD spokesman referred to comments by Prime Minister Gordon Brown in July.

"We plan -- subject to the conditions on the ground and the advice of military commanders -- to reduce our force levels in Iraq as we complete our key tasks in Basra in the early months of next year," the spokesman said.

But he added: "Final decisions on the timing of the drawdown will depend on the circumstances at the time.

"We will remain committed to Iraq. We expect to move from next year towards a long-term, broad-based bilateral relationship with Iraq similar to the relationship we have with other allies in the region, including a training and education role for our military personnel."

From a peak of 46,000 British soldiers in 2003 when Britain joined the invasion, just 4,000 remain in Iraq and the majority are currently confined to Basra air base in the south of the country.

In its report, the Guardian newspaper said that instead of handing over to the Iraqi authorities, the British troops would be replaced by several thousand US troops.

Up to 400 troops are likely to remain to help train the Iraqi forces, while equipment such as helicopters and drones will be transferred to Afghanistan.

The British prime minister has ruled out a timetable for a withdrawal but has indicated he wants to reduce the number of troops in Iraq.

Visiting Iraq in July, he told troops they were bringing Britain's work in the country to its conclusion.

The Ministry of Defence did not deny the withdrawal reports, but a spokesman pointed out that the Iraqis already had the lead in providing security in Basra, and that this would not change.

"UK combat forces will leave Iraq earlier than US forces, so of course the US will need to protect the main supply routes through the south of Iraq -- but there is no question of the US taking over in Basra."

He added: "We continue to negotiate our own future legal arrangements for the UK military role with the government of Iraq. Our negotiations have made good progress to date and we expect to be able to agree a sound legal framework with the government of Iraq before the end of the year."

Iraq's national security adviser, Muwafaq al-Rubaie, told AFP last month that negotiations between London and Baghdad on Britain's pullout had begun a fortnight earlier.

"By the end of next year there will be no British troops in Iraq," he said.

However, any decision will likely depend on the situation on the ground, and in particular the peaceful passage of provincial elections at the end of January -- the first vote in the country since 2005.

Critics of the Iraq war welcomed the reports. "Our whole country will breathe a sigh of relief that an end to this illegal war is now in sight," said Nick Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Britain's second-biggest opposition party.

Since the invasion, 177 British troops have died in Iraq.

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