London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 30, 2025

Suella Braverman failed to prove source of MI5 spy story leak - judge

Suella Braverman failed to prove source of MI5 spy story leak - judge

Suella Braverman failed to show a government source had not leaked confidential details of a court case involving MI5 to a newspaper, a judge has said.
Mr Justice Chamberlain made the comments as he ruled against the government's attempt to have its legal costs paid by the BBC.

This followed a High Court battle over identifying an abusive MI5 agent.

The government got an injunction preventing the man being identified.

The BBC had wanted to name the man, known as X in legal proceedings, saying he abused his status as an MI5 informant to coerce a former partner.

The judge said the BBC was "entirely successful" on one issue, partly because Ms Braverman had been unable to show a leak did not come from within government.

In January, Ms Braverman - who was then the attorney general and is now home secretary - had applied for an injunction preventing X from being identified by the planned story.

Ms Braverman had initially wanted the entire case heard in private, but lost this application.

Before a hearing had taken place, the Daily Telegraph reported Ms Braverman was seeking an injunction to block a BBC story about a spy working for British intelligence.

The briefing received by the newspaper damaged the government's argument that publishing details of the case could harm national security.

Mr Justice Chamberlain today said the issue of open justice had a "special importance" in the proceedings.

He said that the BBC "was entirely successful on this issue, in part because the attorney general had been unable to negative the inference that a government source had briefed the Daily Telegraph about the case, while at the same time inviting the court to order an entirely private hearing".

A government leak inquiry was ordered into who briefed confidential details to the newspaper.

Ms Braverman was one of those investigated by the leak inquiry, the BBC understands.

The government has not responded to the BBC's questions about the inquiry, including as to whether Ms Braverman was questioned.

Last month, No 10 defended her after questions about her relationship with MI5 because of the leak.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reappointed Ms Braverman as home secretary days after she quit for breaching the ministerial code by sending confidential material via a private email account.

Because an injunction was granted, after the judge said identifying X would create a risk to him, the government argued its legal costs should be paid by the BBC.

The judge dismissed that claim on Friday, saying the BBC had been able to publish a detailed story "far beyond" the initial broad restrictions sought by the government.

"Applying common sense", he ruled, "the outcome was mid-way between what the attorney general had initially said she would accept and what the BBC wanted to publish."

Both sides will pay their own costs, which is what the BBC had argued for.

The BBC investigation included interviews with two former partners of X, one of whom had filmed the MI5 agent attacking her with a machete.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
Explosive Email Shows Sarah Ferguson Begged Forgiveness from Jeffrey Epstein After Taking His Money
×