Parliamentary Committees and Public Enquiries
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Government and prosecutors respond to JCNSS report on Cash/Berry spy case
Government response: Espionage cases and the Official Secrets Acts
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- Read the Government and Crown Prosecution Service's response [PDF]
The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy recently published the Government and Crown Prosecution Service’s responses to the Committee’s report on ‘Espionage cases and the Official Secrets Acts’.
The Committee’s report examined the circumstances surrounding the collapsed prosecution of two individuals accused of spying on Members of Parliament for China, and explored what lessons could be learned for future prosecutions.
The Government acknowledges the Committee’s conclusion that there were misaligned expectations between the Crown Prosecution Service and the Government, and accepts that there is room to improve communications.
It accepts the Committee’s recommendation to use an internal exercise to develop guiding principles for future cases, and says the Attorney General’s Office, Crown Prosecution Service and Cabinet Office will develop new guidance on national security prosecutions, which will be shared with the Committee.
In its response, the Government says it “remains deeply disappointed by the collapse of the prosecution case under the Official Secrets Act 1911” but says that the new National Security Act 2023 “significant enhanced” the UK’s ability to deter, detect and disrupt state threats.
This Government also says it will review the advice available to bound witnesses giving evidence in sensitive national security cases, to ensure they fully understand expectations and to ensure that sufficient support is available.
Chair comment
Chair of the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy, Matt Western, recently said:
“The Committee’s inquiry into the collapse of this case was detailed and forensic. Our aim was not to find fault or to cast blame, but to explore what lessons could be learned for the future.
“I am encouraged that ministers will take forward our recommendations to improve communications, review the support available to bound witnesses, and work with the CPS on better protocols and principles for handling future cases. These are positive steps that will reassure the public that Government takes such cases extremely seriously.
“It is time to draw a line under this whole affair. The new National Security Act will certainly help, but the Government must resist complacency.”
Further information
Original article link: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/111/national-security-strategy-joint-committee/news/211847/government-and-prosecutors-respond-to-jcnss-report-on-cashberry-spy-case/
