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How Whitehall leaks turned into crisis for the Yard
Robert Mendick, Chief Reporter02.12.08
May 2006
Christopher Galley, a Home Office civil servant, meets the Tory immigration spokesman Damian Green for the first time at the House of Commons. Galley, who had previously stood as a Tory party candidate for Sunderland council, tells Green he is concerned about the Government's immigration policy. Several months later Galley, 26, applies for a job with Green but is rejected.
November 2007 to September 2008
Galley begins leaking documents to the Tories in November 2007, possibly earlier. The Conservatives acknowledge that four leaks took place; the Home Office claims 20 incidents are under investigation. Leaks include revelations that: licences had been granted to security guards who were illegal immigrants and Home Secretary Jacqui Smith kept it secret; an illegal immigrant was working as a cleaner in the Commons in February this year; and a draft letter from Ms Smith to Downing Street in August warned that a recession could lead to a rise in crime
October 2008Sir David Normington, permanent secretary at the Home Office and nicknamed the "smiling assassin", begins an internal inquiry into the leaks. In the second week of October, the Cabinet Office calls in the Met Police. The request goes to Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick, head of specialist operations and a former chief constable of Surrey. Quick's role puts him in charge of Counter Terrorism Command. Quick tells Sir Ian Blair, then Met Commissioner, that he intends to launch a full investigation. A week earlier Sir Ian had resigned after pressure from Mayor Boris Johnson. Sir Paul Stephenson, his deputy and now acting commissioner, is told of the inquiry.
19 November
Galley, who earns £25,000 as an assistant private secretary, is arrested at his home in Feltham in Middlesex on suspicion of misconduct in a public office. He is taken to a central London police station and held for several hours. During questioning, his lawyer says, he volunteered the whereabouts of his computer, mobile phone and other documents. He is released on bail. Police also remove property from a business address in central London.
21 November
Galley is re-arrested and bailed again.
27 NovemberGreen, 52, is arrested at 2pm and held for nine hours "on suspicion of conspiring to commit misconduct in a public office and aiding and abetting, counselling or procuring misconduct in a public office". Police search his home and offices in Kent and his office in Parliament. They seize computers and documents including letters to his wife and confidential details of constituents. He is bailed.
Jacqui Smith insists she was not aware of the arrest before it took place, possibly because she was in Brussels. Gordon Brown insists he was only informed afterwards.
Commons Speaker Michael Martin is told of the planned arrest at least seven hours beforehand. Martin insists he was merely informed of the decision and that permission for police to enter the Commons was given by Jill Pay, the Serjeant at Arms. Stephenson telephones Boris Johnson, who is also chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority, at 10am to tell him an MP is to be arrested. Forty minutes before the arrest he telephones again to tell the Mayor it is Green. The Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer is informed of the decision.
30 November
Amid a growing furore, the Tories reveal Green was accused during questioning by police of "grooming" Galley, a phrase with paedophile connotations. The claim suggests police believe Green encouraged Galley to leak papers. MPs threaten to disrupt tomorrow's state opening of Parliament.
1 December
Galley holds a press conference. His solicitor Neil O'May says Green was Galley's only contact in the Commons and that the leaked documents were important to holding the Government to account. Closing date for applications for Met Commissioner: both Quick and Stephenson apply.
2 December
Scotland Yard calls in the Chief Constable of the British Transport Police to oversee a review of police tactics.
Reader views (6)
It is surely common knowledge that every Civil Servant signs the Official Secrets Act as a condition of his/her employment. Divulging information gained in the course of that employment (in this case apparently over more than a decade) is a criminal offence. A recipient of such information who fails to inform the police is colluding in that criminal offence.
I am not suggesting that there is not a moral case for whistleblowing if an employee believes that the government is behaving illegally and decieving the public on a matter of serious substance. However, I would have thought that the obvious place to blow your whistle would be in the public media. Feeding information to an opposition political party to which you are affiliated seems to me contemptible and an abuse of public duty of the lowest kind.
- Adrian Morran, london, UK
i think Ms Smith is telling lies
- Philip Smith, seaford england
In the context of this matter, and in view of the recent statement by ACPO relating to it, I do not believe there is a senior policeman anywhere in the country who is capable of conducting an impartial examination of the case. It most certainly will not be without equivocation of one sort or another. There is only one way now to satisfactorily resolve the issue and that is to bring Galley and Green to court charged with the alleged offences and let a court decide if leaking embarassing material to an MP, as against material which undermines national security, is an offence or otherwise. The police in general are already seen as being subservient to this government's dictates and cannot, therefore, be trusted to produce a balanced report. Also, we do not want a policeman's opinion, we need one which carries a higher authority, is meaningful and independent of any political influence. The whole matter has arisen because of stupid, controlling legislation introduced by this government in an attempt to prevent leakage of information which should rightly be presented to Parliament and in the public domain, which ministers are suppressing. It was wrong when it was introduced, it is wrong now and will be wrong for ever in the future. Quite simply, cover-ups of any sort are the wrongdoing, not exposing the subject of that wrongdoing.
- Abe, Manchester, UK
In October 2008 you say "Quick tells Sir Ian Blair, then Met Commissioner, that he intends to launch a full investigation"
Why? Why is the Assistant Commissioner in charge of specialist operations and Counter Terrorism even interested in an a leak of office information worse still a leak to a "safe" MP.
There are two possibilities either he thought such leaks were part of a terrorist plot or specialist operations includes cracking down on office gossip and the causes of office gossip. Oh yes or a third we have a highly dangerous and politicised police force who were directed to track a trail from a mole to a known target and see if they could nail them both.
- Bill G, Slough
The Commons has been unfit for purpose for some years.
MP's are no longer allowed to hold the Executive to account.
Our democracy is in decline and we the people have betrayed those who died to secure it in the second world war. We need a National Government and suspension of Party politics with someone like John Sergeant with his knowledge of politics and common sense as a central figure to fill the gap left by Churchill. I do suspect he might have the integrity required. that is a rarity indeed at Westminster.
There is no point in voting if the Party political systom has renegged on democracy. I will consider voting after reform, I doubt that I will live long enough to see it at my age.
- H I Manning, New Brighton Merseyside
I am intrigued by the comment that the Home Secretary was not aware of the arrest before it took place, possibly because she was in Brussels.
Neither was I but I was aware that the Police had arrived at Mr Green's Constituency office at 1.00pm to carry out a search.
I think Ms Smith should be asked if she was aware that he was going to be arrested. Her earlier comment of not knowing exactly when the arrest took place is to easy to gloss over.
- Gordon Williams, Ashford
