Damian Green Arrested For Doing His Job
What is the job of an Opposition MP? To hold the government to account. And this applies double to a shadow minister. So why was Damian Green arrested – and arrested under counter-terrorism laws?
His supposed crime is “aiding and abetting misconduct in public office,” by which we can translate into English as “receiving leaks from civil servants”. But it’s not like this is (a) a new thing, or (b) that only civil servants leak – after all, the ship of state is the only ship that leaks from the top…
On being released after being held for nine hours, Damian Green said:
I emphatically deny I have done anything wrong.
I have many times made public information that the Government wanted to keep secret – information that the public has a right to know.
In a democracy, opposition politicians have a duty to hold the Government to account. I was elected to the House of Commons precisely to do that and I certainly intend to continue doing so.
No-one who believes in parliamentary democracy can agree with this arrest. It’s not like he has been involved releasing information that we don’t have a right to know. The BBC has a list of the relevant leaks:
-
The November 2007 revelation that the home secretary knew the Security Industry Authority had granted licences to 5,000 illegal workers, but decided not to publicise it.
-
The February 2008 news that an illegal immigrant had been employed as a cleaner in the House of Commons.
-
A whips’ list of potential Labour rebels in the vote on plans to increase the pre-charge terror detention limit to 42 days.
-
A letter from the home secretary warning that a recession could lead to a rise in crime.
Exciting stuff, huh? A terrorist could have made really good use of that information! Not.
What does make no sense is the government denial that either Gordon Brown or Jacqui Smith – the Home Secretary – had any prior knowledge of the arrest, even though dvance warning was given to David Cameron, Boris Johnson and both the Speaker and Serjeant at Arms of the House of Commons. So they thought to tell all these people, but not the Home Secretary or Prime Minister of the arrest of a senior MP? Rubbish.
David Cameron is standing behind Damian Green, because he has done nothing wrong. His arrest for receiving leaked information is the hallmark of a police state. He’s not a terrorist, he’s a politician. And he was doing his job.
Silencing opposition – the “politics” or fascism of New Labour?
Updated my blog.
This is obviously the Policing we can now expect – the sort that does what the Government tells it.
So expect that knock on your door if you dare oppose these pseudo nazis backed up by their own Stasi.
Chris Close
http://www.a-i-darlo.com/wordpress/
What has happened?
Damian Green, the shadow immigration spokesman, was arrested and held by the Metropolitan Police for nine hours. His offices in Kent and London and home were also searched by officers.
Who is Damian Green?
Firmly on the moderate wing of the Conservative Party, the 52-year-old Ashford MP is a former television journalist and adviser to John Major who entered Parliament in 1997. He has held the immigration brief since 2005.
Why do the Metropolitan Police say they have arrested him?
As part of an investigation into alleged leaks from the Home Office. A junior Home Office official was suspended over a series of leaks of sensitive information and the matter was referred to the police. The official, who is suspected of feeding the leaked information to Mr Green, was arrested on 19 November but released on bail without charge. The police say they arrested Mr Green on suspicion of “conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office” and “aiding and abetting, counselling or procuring misconduct in a public office”.
Who authorised the arrest?
Some Tory sources have suggested it must have been authorised from the very top of government but the Metropolitan Police say it was done without ministerial knowledge or approval. They have declined to name the officer who gave the go-ahead, but given the sensitive nature of the operation it is likely to have been sanctioned by new Met chief Sir Paul Stephenson. London Mayor Boris Johnson was informed of the arrest in advance and expressed “grave concerns” to Sir Paul, warning him that he did not regard it as “common sense policing”.
Why were counter-terrorism officers used?
The Met said the investigation was not related to terrorism but counter-terrorism officers were used because they were the “most appropriate to carry out this inquiry”. The Counter-Terrorism Command of New Scotland Yard incorporates what used to be known as Special Branch, which investigates matters with a security element.
What has been leaked to Damian Green?
There have been a number of high profile leaks of information from the Home Office, stretching back to last year.
• A leaked e-mail from Home Secretary Jacqui Smith’s private secretary in July 2007 showed she had chosen not to publicise the fact that licences had been granted to security guards who were illegal immigrants. She denied there had been a “blunder” but later admitted that as many as 11,000 illegal immigrants may have been cleared to work as security staff.
• A memo to Home Office minister Liam Byrne was leaked to reveal in February this year that an illegal immigrant had been employed as a cleaner in the House of Commons.
• A draft Home Office letter to Downing Street was then leaked in August, in which Jacqui Smith warned that a recession could lead to a rise in crime. The Home Office said the document was draft advice which had not been cleared by the home secretary.
Has this happened before?
No. It is unprecedented for an MP to be arrested and his office searched by police in connection with a leak inquiry. Mr Green is suspected of committing a common law offence, under an obscure and little-used piece of legislation. Legal experts have said charges are unlikely to be brought, and unlikely to succeed if they did go ahead.
What is behind it?
Some Tory MPs have been saying privately that the arrest could be linked to the feud between outgoing Metropolitan Police chief Sir Ian Blair, who leaves his job this week, and Conservative mayor Boris Johnson, although there is no concrete evidence of this. The Home Office said it took the unusual step of calling in the police to investigate the leaks because they were risking the effective operation of the department. The police may have raided Mr Green’s homes and offices in order to gather evidence against the home office official arrested on 19 November.
Why are there fears about its impact on democracy?
There is concern the police are being used to silence critics of the government and prevent disclosure of embarrassing material – something firmly denied by ministers. Opposition parties and journalists have long relied on leaks of sensitive material to help them do their job of holding the government to account. Many internal leak inquiries have been launched over the years, but the perpetrators are rarely caught. The police have occasionally become involved but successful prosecutions are very rare.
What do the Tories say?
Party leader David Cameron has reacted angrily, saying it raises questions about Britain’s democracy when an MP can be arrested “for making public information that the government didn’t want to be made public”. Former shadow home secretary David Davis has compared the operation to the sort of tactics employed against opposition parties by Robert Mugabe’s government in Zimbabwe.
What do Labour say?
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he had no prior knowledge of the arrest and it was purely a matter for the police. Mr Green’s opposite number, immigration minister Phil Woolas, said he was “taken aback” when he heard about it but said he would not comment further until more facts were known about the inquiry.
What happens next?
Mr Green has been released on bail until a date in February. He may be re-arrested and re-bailed or released without charge.
[...] I can but support the idea of disrupting the State opening of Parliament. MPs must be able to do their job and oppose the government with al the information at their [...]
[...] in public office”, the very same law that Damian Green was incorrectly arrested under. If Labour do not act vey very fast to sort this out, they will be in deep [...]
[...] seriousness of the leaks that led to the arrest of Damian Green were exaggerated, according to the home affairs select committee. They also [...]
Leave your response!
Blue Idea TV
Blogroll
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
Categories
Archives
Text size
My Network
Advertisements
The Blue Idea theme by hawesWeb Productions, an edited version of the Arthemia theme by Michael Hutagalung