Latest news with #AfghanistanResponseRoute
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Why did the UK government secretly fly thousands of Afghans to Britain?
LONDON, July 15 (Reuters) - Britain set up a secret scheme to bring thousands of Afghans to the UK after their personal details were disclosed in a data leak, putting them at risk of reprisals from the Taliban after their return to power in Afghanistan. The data breach and relocation programme were made public on Tuesday after a court injunction banning their disclosure was lifted. In early 2022, a spreadsheet containing details of Afghans who had worked for the British government prior to the Taliban takeover in 2021 and had applied for relocation to Britain was emailed to someone outside of government systems by mistake. The data was thought to contain the names of a small number of applicants for the scheme, but actually had personal information linked to around 18,700 applicants and their family members. In August 2023, the UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) discovered part of the dataset had been published on Facebook. The government, then-led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party, sought to keep the breach a secret using the British legal system. A judge at the High Court in London on September 1, 2023, granted a superinjunction, which is an order banning not just disclosure of any details but the existence of the order itself. Thereafter, judges decided to maintain the superinjunction because the MoD said there was a real risk that the Taliban did not know about the dataset and if they learned of its existence would take steps to kill or injure those whose names were on it. The government set up the Afghanistan Response Route (ARR) in April 2024 for those who had not previously been found eligible for relocation but were judged to be at the highest risk of reprisals by the Taliban as a result of the leak. That scheme has now been closed. After several private hearings, a different High Court judge ruled in May 2024 that the injunction should be lifted, citing among other things the inability of the public or parliament to scrutinise the government's decisions. This decision was, however, overturned by the Court of Appeal in July 2024 in light of the potential risks to those whose information had been leaked. The government commissioned a review of Britain's relocation policy earlier this year, which reported that even the Taliban acquiring the dataset was "unlikely to substantially change an individual's existing exposure" to harm. The MoD then told the High Court earlier this month that it was applying to lift the injunction, which took place on Tuesday. British Defence Minister John Healey said 900 Afghans named in the breach and 3,600 of their relatives had been relocated to Britain directly as a result of the leak. A further 600 invitations to those named in the leaks would be honoured, plus an unspecified number of family members. So far, more than 16,000 people affected by it had been relocated to Britain as of May this year, though some of those affected had been relocated under existing schemes. The overall cost of the leak was estimated at about 2 billion pounds, said one government official, who declined to be named. The government-commissioned review concluded there was no evidence which clearly pointed to the Taliban gaining possession of the dataset. It said there was little evidence of intent by the Taliban to conduct a campaign of retribution. The review said while killings were undoubtedly still occurring in Afghanistan, and human rights violations were extensive, it was extremely difficult to determine the causes of individual killings or detentions.
Spectator
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Reform will exploit the Afghan scandal to the full
The Afghan data leak is the kind of scandal which is perfect for Reform UK. It involves gross incompetence, profligacy and the complicity of both major parties. The Tories took the decision to allow thousands of Afghans into the country secretly; Labour continued the super-injunction which stopped that fact from being reported. Both Nigel Farage and Zia Yusuf are now gleefully savaging the last Tory government for decisions taken in late 2023. Two ministers in that Home Office at that time were Suella Braverman and Robert Jenrick. She left the Home Office on 13 November; he followed on 6 December. Allies of both say that official records will show that the pair opposed the scale and premise of the Ministry of Defence plan. The secret Afghanistan Response Route began on 19 December, after both had left office. But Reform is now going hard on the fact that both Braverman and Jenrick knew about the proposals and the imposition of the super injunction, which was imposed at the start of September. For some in Reform, the scandal offers a welcome chance to put Jenrick back in his box. Amid much speculation about the Shadow Justice Secretary's future plans, for Farage loyalists, the past 24 hours have offered Westminster a useful reminder of the potency of their attacks. They intend to show that Jenrick, like all the other Tories, is tarred by the last 14 years. 'Nigel is a million times better than him', says one aide. Having largely ignored Jenrick for months, now is the time for Reform to fire their ammunition. His X account, usually so active, has been silent for the past 24 hours. Then there is the case of Braverman. She remains a Tory MP but is on constant defection watch. Her husband, Rael, had been a vocal supporter of Reform UK since December. He has chosen to quit the party today – unsurprising, perhaps, given the venom of some of Reform's attacks. 'The list of former Tory ministers who should defect to Reform,' wrote Yusuf yesterday, 'is shorter than the list that should probably be in jail'. Farage's party is unapologetic about their robustness and Mr Braverman's resignation: they argue that their hands cannot be tied in responding to this scandal. Next week, Reform will begin a major six-week campaign across the country. It is expected to focus on crime and the pressures which are being placed on the justice system by the unprecedented levels of both legal and illegal migration. The Afghan scandal could not have come at a better time to tee all this up. Farage said on X yesterday that 'amongst the number that have come are convicted sex offenders… the threat to women walking the streets of this country, frankly, is incalculable.' Expect to see more of that in the weeks that lie ahead.
Qatar Tribune
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Thousands being relocated to UK after personal data leak of Afghans
PA Media/dpa London Thousands of people are being relocated to the UK as part of a secret £850 million ($1.14 billion) scheme set up after a personal data leak of Afghans who supported British forces, it can now be reported. A dataset containing the personal information of nearly 19,000 people who applied for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) was released 'in error' in February 2022 by a defence official. The breach resulted in the creation of a secret Afghan relocation scheme - the Afghanistan Response Route - in April 2024. The scheme is understood to have cost around £400 million so far, with a projected cost once completed of around £850 million. Millions more is expected to be paid in legal costs and compensation. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) only became aware of the breach over a year after the release, when excerpts of the dataset were anonymously posted onto a Facebook group in August 2023. Details on the dataset include the the names and contact details of the ARAP applicants and names of their family members. ARAP was responsible for relocating Afghan nationals who had worked for or with the UK government and were therefore at risk of reprisals once the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. Between 80,000 and 100,000 people, including the estimated number of family members of the ARAP applicants, were affected by the breach and could be at risk of harassment, torture or death if the Taliban obtained their data, judges said in June 2024. However an independent review, commissioned by the government in January 2025, concluded last month that the dataset is 'unlikely to significantly shift Taliban understanding of individuals who may be of interest to them.' Around 4,500 people - made up of 900 ARAP applicants and approximately 3,600 family members have been brought to the UK or are in transit so far through the Afghanistan Response Route. A further estimated 600 people and their relatives are expected to be relocated before the scheme closes, with a total of around 6,900 people expected to be relocated by the end of the scheme.
Rhyl Journal
a day ago
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Defence Secretary offers ‘sincere apology' for leak of Afghans' personal data
Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge also apologised on behalf of the former Conservative government, who were in power when the leak occurred and when it was discovered more than a year later. Their apologies came after a superinjunction was lifted on Tuesday, which had prevented the media from reporting the data breach. Mr Healey told the Commons: 'This serious data incident should never have happened. 'It may have occurred three years ago under the previous government, but to all those whose information was compromised, I offer a sincere apology today on behalf of the British Government, and I trust the shadow defence secretary, as a former defence minister, will join me.' Mr Cartlidge, who was a minister in August 2023 when the then-government became aware of the data breach, mirrored this sentiment. He said: 'The Secretary of State has issued an apology on behalf of the Government and I join him in that and in recognising that this data leak should never have happened and was an unacceptable breach of all relevant data protocols. 'And I agree it is right that an apology is issued specifically to those whose data was compromised.' A dataset containing the personal information of nearly 19,000 people who applied for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) was released 'in error' in February 2022 by a defence official. Arap was responsible for relocating Afghan nationals who had worked for or with the UK Government and were therefore at risk of reprisals once the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) only became aware of the breach over a year after the release, when excerpts of the dataset were anonymously posted onto a Facebook group in August 2023. The Government sought a court order to prevent details of the breach being published and was granted a superinjunction, which also stopped the fact an injunction had been made from being reported. The leak resulted in the creation of a secret Afghan relocation scheme – the Afghanistan Response Route (ARR) – in April 2024. Between 80,000 and 100,000 people, including family members of the Arap applicants, were affected by the breach and could be at risk of harassment, torture or death if the Taliban obtained their data, judges said in June 2024. However an independent review, commissioned by the Government in January 2025, concluded last month that the data loss was 'unlikely to profoundly change the existing risk profile of individuals named'. Around 4,500 people, made up of 900 Arap applicants and approximately 3,600 family members, have been brought to the UK or are in transit so far through the Afghanistan Response Route. A further estimated 600 people and their relatives are expected to be relocated before the scheme closes, with a total of around 6,900 people expected to be relocated by the end of the scheme. The ARR is understood to have cost around £400 million so far, with a projected cost of around £850 million, once completed. Mr Healey told MPs that he had been 'deeply uncomfortable to be constrained from reporting to this House' as he referred to the superinjunction, which was made at the High Court in September 2023 to reduce the risk of alerting the Taliban to the existence of the data breach. He added that the safety of Afghans who were at risk from the leak had weighed 'heavily' on him. The Defence Secretary said: 'I would have wanted to settle these matters sooner, because full accountability to Parliament and freedom of the press matter deeply to me. They're fundamental to our British way of life. 'However, lives may have been at stake, and I've spent many hours thinking about this decision. Thinking about the safety and the lives of people I will never meet, in a far-off land, in which 457 of our servicemen and women lost their lives. 'So this weighs heavily on me, and it's why no Government could take such decisions lightly, without sound grounds and hard deliberations.' He assured MPs that the MoD has taken steps to prevent another such data breach happening again. He said: 'This data leak was just one of many from the Afghan schemes at the time. 'And what I can say is that since the election, in this last year, we as a Government have appointed a new chief information officer. 'We have installed new software to securely share data, and we have also completed a comprehensive review of the legacy Afghan data on the casework system.' The minister said 'one can never say never', but added that he is 'more confident than I was 12 months ago about the reduced risk of data losses and data breaches in future'. Chairman of the defence committee Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi told the Commons: 'This whole data breach situation is a mess and is wholly unacceptable.' The Labour MP added that he is 'minded to recommend to my defence committee colleagues that we thoroughly investigate, to ascertain what has actually transpired here, given the serious ramifications on so many levels'.
Leader Live
a day ago
- Politics
- Leader Live
Defence Secretary offers ‘sincere apology' for leak of Afghans' personal data
Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge also apologised on behalf of the former Conservative government, who were in power when the leak occurred and when it was discovered more than a year later. Their apologies came after a superinjunction was lifted on Tuesday, which had prevented the media from reporting the data breach. Mr Healey told the Commons: 'This serious data incident should never have happened. 'It may have occurred three years ago under the previous government, but to all those whose information was compromised, I offer a sincere apology today on behalf of the British Government, and I trust the shadow defence secretary, as a former defence minister, will join me.' Mr Cartlidge, who was a minister in August 2023 when the then-government became aware of the data breach, mirrored this sentiment. He said: 'The Secretary of State has issued an apology on behalf of the Government and I join him in that and in recognising that this data leak should never have happened and was an unacceptable breach of all relevant data protocols. 'And I agree it is right that an apology is issued specifically to those whose data was compromised.' A dataset containing the personal information of nearly 19,000 people who applied for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) was released 'in error' in February 2022 by a defence official. Arap was responsible for relocating Afghan nationals who had worked for or with the UK Government and were therefore at risk of reprisals once the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) only became aware of the breach over a year after the release, when excerpts of the dataset were anonymously posted onto a Facebook group in August 2023. The Government sought a court order to prevent details of the breach being published and was granted a superinjunction, which also stopped the fact an injunction had been made from being reported. The leak resulted in the creation of a secret Afghan relocation scheme – the Afghanistan Response Route (ARR) – in April 2024. Between 80,000 and 100,000 people, including family members of the Arap applicants, were affected by the breach and could be at risk of harassment, torture or death if the Taliban obtained their data, judges said in June 2024. However an independent review, commissioned by the Government in January 2025, concluded last month that the data loss was 'unlikely to profoundly change the existing risk profile of individuals named'. Around 4,500 people, made up of 900 Arap applicants and approximately 3,600 family members, have been brought to the UK or are in transit so far through the Afghanistan Response Route. A further estimated 600 people and their relatives are expected to be relocated before the scheme closes, with a total of around 6,900 people expected to be relocated by the end of the scheme. The ARR is understood to have cost around £400 million so far, with a projected cost of around £850 million, once completed. Mr Healey told MPs that he had been 'deeply uncomfortable to be constrained from reporting to this House' as he referred to the superinjunction, which was made at the High Court in September 2023 to reduce the risk of alerting the Taliban to the existence of the data breach. He added that the safety of Afghans who were at risk from the leak had weighed 'heavily' on him. The Defence Secretary said: 'I would have wanted to settle these matters sooner, because full accountability to Parliament and freedom of the press matter deeply to me. They're fundamental to our British way of life. 'However, lives may have been at stake, and I've spent many hours thinking about this decision. Thinking about the safety and the lives of people I will never meet, in a far-off land, in which 457 of our servicemen and women lost their lives. 'So this weighs heavily on me, and it's why no Government could take such decisions lightly, without sound grounds and hard deliberations.' He assured MPs that the MoD has taken steps to prevent another such data breach happening again. He said: 'This data leak was just one of many from the Afghan schemes at the time. 'And what I can say is that since the election, in this last year, we as a Government have appointed a new chief information officer. 'We have installed new software to securely share data, and we have also completed a comprehensive review of the legacy Afghan data on the casework system.' The minister said 'one can never say never', but added that he is 'more confident than I was 12 months ago about the reduced risk of data losses and data breaches in future'. Chairman of the defence committee Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi told the Commons: 'This whole data breach situation is a mess and is wholly unacceptable.' The Labour MP added that he is 'minded to recommend to my defence committee colleagues that we thoroughly investigate, to ascertain what has actually transpired here, given the serious ramifications on so many levels'.
