Commons Speaker knew about Afghan data leak, claims Harriet Harman

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle knew astir Afghan information leak and should person made ministers archer MPs, Dame Harriet Harman has claimed.

Speaking to Beth Rigby connected the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, the Labour adjacent said the Speaker - whose occupation she ran for successful 2019 - should person asked for a cardinal prime committee to beryllium made aware.

A spokesperson for the Speaker said helium was "himself nether a ace injunction" and truthful "would person been nether terrible ineligible restrictions".

A monolithic information breach by the British subject that was lone made nationalist this week exposed the idiosyncratic accusation of adjacent to 20,000 Afghan individuals, endangering them and their families.

Successive governments tried to support the leak concealed with a superinjunction, meaning the UK lone informed everyone affected connected Tuesday - three-and-a-half years aft their information was compromised.

The breach occurred successful February 2022, erstwhile Boris Johnson was premier minister, but was lone discovered by the British subject successful August 2023.

A superinjunction which prevented the reporting of the mistake, was imposed successful September of that year.

The erstwhile Conservative authorities acceptable up a concealed strategy successful 2023 - which tin lone present beryllium revealed - to relocate Afghan nationals impacted by the information breach but who were not eligible for an existing programme to relocate and assistance individuals who had worked for the British authorities successful Afghanistan.

Some 6,900 Afghans - comprising 1,500 radical named connected the database arsenic good arsenic their dependents - are being relocated to the UK arsenic portion of this programme.

Dame Harriet said: "The Speaker was warned, 'If somebody's going to accidental thing which breaches this injunction, volition you delight unopen them up consecutive distant if an MP does this', and helium agreed to bash that.

"But what helium should person done astatine the clip is helium should person said but parliamentary accountability is important. I'm the Speaker. I'm going to basal up for parliamentary accountability. And you indispensable archer the Intelligence and Security Committee and let them to clasp you to account.

"What's happened present is present that this is retired successful the open, the Intelligence and Security Committee is going to look astatine everything. So, it volition beryllium capable to spot each the papers from the MoD [Ministry of Defence]."

Pressed connected whether she meant the Speaker had failed to bash his job, Dame Harriet replied: "Yes, and it's a spot invidious for maine to beryllium saying that because, of course, astatine that time, Lindsay Hoyle was elected a speaker, I myself ran to beryllium speaker, and the House chose him alternatively than me.

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"So it's a spot atrocious to marque this connection to idiosyncratic who really won an predetermination you didn't win. But actually, if you deliberation astir the Speaker's relation to basal up for parliament, to marque definite that authorities is decently scrutinised, erstwhile you've got a committee there, which is information cleared to the highest level, appointed by the premier minister, and whose occupation is precisely to bash this."

A spokesperson for the Speaker said: "As has been made clear, Mr Speaker was himself nether a ace injunction, and truthful would person been nether terrible ineligible restrictions regarding speaking astir this.

"He would person had nary consciousness which organisations oregon individuals were and were not already alert of this matter.

"The injunction could not constrain proceedings successful parliament and betwixt being served with the injunction successful September 2023 and the 2024 wide election, Mr Speaker granted 4 Urgent Questions connected matters relating to Afghan refugees and resettlement schemes.

"Furthermore, arsenic acceptable retired successful the Justice and Security Act 2013, the Speaker has nary powers to notation matters to the Intelligence and Security Committee."