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U.K. Government Accused of Bugging Lawmaker
by
findingDulcinea Staff
A conversation between a British member of parliament and a suspected terrorist is thought to have been bugged. The opposition questions whether the government is committed to maintaining legislators' immunity from surveillance.
30-Second Summary
U.K. lawmaker Sadiq Khan made a prison visit to his childhood friend Babar Ahmad, who is being held in custody for terrorism-related offenses.
That meeting appears to have been bugged. Former Detective Sgt. Mark Kearney said he was ordered to record the conversation and placed a recording device in the room where the two men met.
Such surveillance is in contravention of Britain's decades-old “Wilson Doctrine,” which forbids the security services from spying on lawmakers.
On Feb. 4, U.K. Minister of Justice Jack Straw announced to the first chamber of the British parliament, the House of Commons, that inquiries into the matter had begun.
David Davis, a member of parliament from the opposition Conservative Party, called Prime Minister Gordon Brown a “liar” on BBC radio. He said that Brown has known about the bugging of politicians for some time. This prompted House of Commons leader and Labour Party politician Harriet Harman to ask Davis to apologize.
Former cabinet member Tony Benn, a household name of the British political left, suspects he was wiretapped during his tenure in office. He calls the rule protecting MPs “a complete illusion” in The Guardian.
That meeting appears to have been bugged. Former Detective Sgt. Mark Kearney said he was ordered to record the conversation and placed a recording device in the room where the two men met.
Such surveillance is in contravention of Britain's decades-old “Wilson Doctrine,” which forbids the security services from spying on lawmakers.
On Feb. 4, U.K. Minister of Justice Jack Straw announced to the first chamber of the British parliament, the House of Commons, that inquiries into the matter had begun.
David Davis, a member of parliament from the opposition Conservative Party, called Prime Minister Gordon Brown a “liar” on BBC radio. He said that Brown has known about the bugging of politicians for some time. This prompted House of Commons leader and Labour Party politician Harriet Harman to ask Davis to apologize.
Former cabinet member Tony Benn, a household name of the British political left, suspects he was wiretapped during his tenure in office. He calls the rule protecting MPs “a complete illusion” in The Guardian.
Headline Link: ‘U.K. Government Asked to Explain Bugging of MP’
On Feb. 4, U.K. Minister of Justice Jack Straw told the House of Commons that investigations had been launched into whether government officials bugged conversations between lawmaker Sadiq Khan and suspected terrorist Babar Ahmad. A decades-old rule prevents British legislators from being bugged.
Source: Newsday
Reactions: ‘Khan Welcomes “Bugging” Inquiry’
In an interview on the Andrew Marr Show on BBC Radio 1, MP Sadiq Khan said he was happy that investigations into the bugging had started quickly. "I'm pleased that the Secretary of State for Justice Jack Straw—as soon as he heard about these allegations yesterday—has ordered an inquiry.”
Source: The BBC
Opinion & Analysis: Bringing the conversation out into the open
Conservative Party member David Davis called former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown a “liar.” According to a report from the BBC, government officials knew about the alleged bugging in December, so Davis believes Brown’s silence on the subject contravenes the protection granted lawmakers. Harriet Harman, leader of the Labour Party-controlled House of Commons, said on BBC Radio 4 that Davis should “apologize.”
Source: The BBC
Tony Benn, Labour Party cabinet minister during the 1970s, said the rule that prohibits the taping of lawmaker's conversations is “a complete illusion. They have always intercepted MPs. The idea that MPs have been protected is not true.” In a diary entry dated Oct. 11, 1978, Benn wrote that his son picked up his father's voice on the radio and his daughter picked up the phone to hear a recording of something Benn had recently said.
Source: The Guardian
Reference: British authority of surveillance
Richard Norton-Taylor, security affairs editor of The Guardian, writes, “Only cabinet ministers can authorize warrants to tap telephones, including mobiles, and to intercept the content of letters and emails.” Chief constables and officers of similar rank must seek approval from a surveillance commissioner before installing bugs.
Source: The Guardian
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