London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 31, 2025

BBC to be taken to court to stop it from reporting on spy story

BBC to be taken to court to stop it from reporting on spy story

Attorney general is seeking an injunction gagging broadcaster, with hearing set for March
The government will take the BBC to court in March in an attempt to prevent it from publishing or broadcasting a proposed news report.

Oliver Sanders QC, representing the attorney general, Suella Braverman, told the high court on Wednesday that the case involved matters of national security and breach of confidence.

The Telegraph reported on Friday that the BBC was planning to reveal the identity of a spy working overseas, prompting comparisons with the Spycatcher saga.

It is a rare example of breach of confidence claim being brought by the government against a media organisation. In 1987, the Thatcher government gagged newspapers in England from reporting on Peter Wright’s claims against MI5, contained in his autobiography, Spycatcher, which had been published in Australia.

Given the sensitivity of the current case, Sanders requested that Wednesday’s hearing be held in private, telling the court: “In our submissions, the difficulty of proceeding in open court … is it makes it almost impossible to discuss the issue, in terms of what the case is about.”

The BBC’s lawyer, Adam Wolanski, opposed the application for the hearing to be held in private, describing it as “a departure from the open justice principle”. Mr Justice Chamberlain ruled that it would be held partially in private but only for discussions surrounding the Telegraph story. As a result the press and public were excluded from the hearing for more than an hour.

However, Chamberlain said he was committed to the case being heard in public where possible, saying: “The principle is not to derogate from open justice unless it is strictly necessary and compellingly justified.

He added: “The interim relief hearing will take place on 1 and 2 March. It will take place in public until – and to the extent – there’s an order made that any part of the hearing should not be in public.”

The judge also directed that a redacted version of the injunction application and claim form, which were previously sealed, can be made public on Thursday.

Before the hearing, a spokesperson for the BBC said: “The attorney general has issued proceedings against the BBC with a view to obtaining an injunction to prevent publication of a proposed BBC news story. We are unable to comment further at this stage, beyond confirming that we would not pursue any story unless it was felt it was overwhelmingly in the public interest to do so and fully in line with the BBC’s editorial standards and values.”

A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office said: “The attorney-general has made an application against the BBC. It would be inappropriate to comment further while proceedings are ongoing.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Amazon Shares Soar 11% as Cloud Business Hits Fastest Growth Since 2022
Credit Markets Flooded with More Than $200 Billion of AI-Linked Debt Issuance
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Says China Made 'a Real Mistake' by Threatening Rare-Earth Exports
Report Claims Nearly Two Billion Dollars in Foreign Charity Funds Flowed into U.S. Advocacy Groups
White House Refutes Reports That US Targeting Military Sites in Venezuela
Meta Seeks Dismissal of Strike 3’s $350 Million Copyright Lawsuit
Apple Exceeds Forecasts With $102.5 Billion Q3 Revenue Despite iPhone Miss
Israel's IDF Major General Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi Admits to Act Amounting to Aiding Hamas During Wartime (Treason)
Shawbrook IPO Marks London’s Biggest UK Listing in Two Years
UK Government Split Over Backing Brazil’s $125 Billion Tropical Forest Fund Ahead of COP30
J.K. Rowling Condemns Glamour UK Feature of Nine Trans Women as 'Men Better at Being Women'
King Charles III Removes Prince Andrew’s Titles and Orders His Departure from Royal Lodge
UK Finance Minister Reeves Releases Email Correspondence to Clarify Rental-Licence Breach
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
×