Defence secretary 'deeply uncomfortable' with govt using super-injunction after Afghanistan data breach

The defence caput has told Sky News helium is "deeply uncomfortable" with the authorities utilizing a super-injunction to support a monolithic information breach hidden.

Almost 7,000 Afghan nationals are being relocated to the UK arsenic a effect of the breach by the British military, with the idiosyncratic accusation of adjacent to 20,000 individuals who helped oregon worked with UK forces being exposed.

John Healey told Matt Barbet connected Breakfast: "I'm truly profoundly uncomfortable with the thought that a authorities applies for a super-injunction.

"If determination are immoderate [other] super-injunctions successful place, I conscionable person to archer you - I don't cognize astir them. I haven't been work into them.

"The important happening present present is that we've closed the scheme."

Follow The World

Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim each Wednesday

Tap to follow

Mr Healey defended the government's determination to support concealed a immense information leak that enactment thousands of lives astatine risk.

The defence caput said erstwhile helium archetypal came into government, "we had to benignant retired a concern which we'd not had entree to dealing with before".

"That meant getting connected apical of the risks, the quality assessments, the argumentation complexities, the tribunal papers and the scope of Afghan relocation schemes the erstwhile authorities had enactment successful place," helium said.

"And it besides meant taking decisions that nary 1 takes lightly due to the fact that lives whitethorn beryllium astatine stake."

Read more:
'My household is finished'
Who volition instrumentality the autumn for the Afghan cover-up? - Listen

Mr Healey added that an autarkic reappraisal helium launched says that it is present "highly improbable that being a sanction connected this information acceptable that was mislaid three-and-a-half years agone increases the hazard of being targeted", which is wherefore the breach tin present beryllium revealed.

Ministers person to relationship for applying for a super-injunction

Challenged connected wherefore it could not beryllium revealed earlier if those connected the database are nary longer astatine risk, Mr Healey said the super-injunction "was a substance for the court".

He said ministers needed to supply judges with a "fresh assessment" successful bid to person the super-injunction lifted.

Mr Healey besides refused to criticise the erstwhile Conservative defence curate Ben Wallace for initially applying for the super-injunction, saying helium did not cognize what accusation the curate had erstwhile helium took the decision.

"But the important happening is they present person to relationship for those decisions," helium added.

The defence caput was asked astir who precisely is liable for the monolithic information leak that is estimated to person outgo millions of pounds.

Mr Healey responded that helium is "not going to motorboat a witch hunt oregon constituent the digit astatine him".

It follows erstwhile veterans curate Johnny Mercer penning publically that helium claims to cognize the idiosyncratic responsible.

Challenged connected whether it is not a "witch hunt", but accountability, Mr Healey deed back.

He said: "This goes overmuch bigger than the mistaken actions of a azygous individual. My occupation arsenic defence secretary, a twelvemonth ago, was to get connected apical of the problems that I inherited."

Mr Healey explained this is wherefore helium launched an autarkic reappraisal and the super-injunction ended, which means the leak and the consequent strategy to bring those astatine hazard to the UK tin present look "proper scrutiny and accountability".