Latest news with #Healey
Observer
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Observer
‘Serious questions' over UK secret Afghan relocations: PM
London: Ministers in the UK's last Conservative government have 'serious questions to answer' over a secret resettlement plan for thousands of Afghans after a data breach endangered their lives, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday. Parliamentary Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said the affair raised significant constitutional issues' after it emerged that the previous government had obtained a court order banning media coverage and preventing any scrutiny by parliament. Thousands of Afghans who worked with the UK and their families have been brought to Britain under the programme following the leak. But the 2022 breach and the resettlement plan to protect those involved from potential repercussions only came to light on Tuesday after a court super-gag was lifted. Defence Minister John Healey told parliament a UK official had accidentally leaked a spreadsheet containing the names and details of almost 19,000 Afghans who had asked to be relocated to Britain. It happened in February 2022, just six months after Taliban fighters seized Kabul, he said. In parliament on Wednesday, Starmer said his government supported the principle of fulfilling 'our obligations to Afghans who served alongside British forces' in the post 9/11 conflict in the South Asian country. Healey had 'set out the full extent of the failings that we inherited: a major data breach, a superinjunction, a secret route that has already cost hundreds of millions of pounds', he added. 'Ministers who served under the party opposite have serious questions to answer about how this was ever allowed to happen,' he said. The nearly two-year-long court ban secured by the previous government prevented any media reporting of the leak. In addition, parliament was not briefed and there was no public knowledge of the resettlement plan and the costs involved. Speaker of Parliament Lindsay Hoyle, who is responsible for the proper administration of the House of Commons, also commented on the affair. 'This episode raises significant constitutional issues. I have therefore asked the clerks to consider whether any lessons need to be learned from this case,' he told lawmakers. Under the Conservatives the secret programme was put in place in April 2024 to help those 'judged to be at the highest risk of reprisals by the Taliban', Healey said told parliament. Some 900 Afghans and 3,600 family members have now been brought to Britain or are in transit under the programme known as the Afghan Response Route, at a cost of around £400 million ($535 million). Applications from 600 more people have also been accepted, bringing the estimated total cost of the scheme to £850 million. They are among some 36,000 Afghans accepted by Britain under different schemes since the August 2021 fall of Kabul. Former defence minister Ben Wallace said he stood by his decision to seek secrecy from the court in August 2023 and rejected claims of a 'cover-up'. — AFP
eNCA
4 hours ago
- Politics
- eNCA
'Serious questions' over UK secret Afghan relocations: PM
Ministers in the UK's last Conservative government have "serious questions to answer" over a secret resettlement plan for thousands of Afghans after a data breach endangered their lives, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday. Parliamentary Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said the affair raised significant constitutional issues" after it emerged that the previous government had obtained a court order banning media coverage and preventing any scrutiny by parliament. Thousands of Afghans who worked with the UK and their families have been brought to Britain under the programme following the leak. But the 2022 breach and the resettlement plan to protect those involved from potential repercussions only came to light on Tuesday after a court super-gag was lifted. Defence Minister John Healey told parliament a UK official had accidentally leaked a spreadsheet containing the names and details of almost 19,000 Afghans who had asked to be relocated to Britain. It happened in February 2022, just six months after Taliban fighters seized Kabul, he said. In parliament Wednesday, Starmer said his government supported the principle of fulfilling "our obligations to Afghans who served alongside British forces" in the post 9/11 conflict in the South Asian country. Healey had "set out the full extent of the failings that we inherited: a major data breach, a superinjunction, a secret route that has already cost hundreds of millions of pounds", he added. "Ministers who served under the party opposite have serious questions to answer about how this was ever allowed to happen," he said. - Kept from parliament - The nearly two-year-long court ban secured by the previous government prevented any media reporting of the leak. In addition, parliament was not briefed and there was no public knowledge of the resettlement plan and the costs involved. Speaker of Parliament Lindsay Hoyle, who is responsible for the proper administration of the House of Commons, also commented on the affair. "This episode raises significant constitutional issues. I have therefore asked the clerks to consider whether any lessons need to be learned from this case," he told lawmakers. Under the Conservatives the secret programme was put in place in April 2024 to help those "judged to be at the highest risk of reprisals by the Taliban", Healey said told parliament. Some 900 Afghans and 3,600 family members have now been brought to Britain or are in transit under the programme known as the Afghan Response Route, at a cost of around £400 million ($535 million). Applications from 600 more people have also been accepted, bringing the estimated total cost of the scheme to £850 million. They are among some 36,000 Afghans accepted by Britain under different schemes since the August 2021 fall of Kabul. - 'No cover-up' - Former defence minister Ben Wallace said he stood by his decision to seek secrecy from the court in August 2023 and rejected claims of a "cover-up". "I make no apology for applying to the court for an injunction at the time," he said. "If this leak was reported at the time, the existence of the list would put in peril those we needed to help," he told BBC radio. When Labour came to power in July 2024, the scheme was up and running but Healey said he had been "deeply uncomfortable to be constrained from reporting" it to parliament.
Boston Globe
6 hours ago
- Business
- Boston Globe
Governor Healey traveled to France last week in personal trip she did not disclose ahead of time
Healey signed a $60.9 billion budget on the Fourth of July — after only four days of review, faster than any other governor in at least the last 25 years. Her office then disclosed the following Monday that the governor would be away with her family for the week. Advertisement Healey's team has a The summertime travel drew criticism from Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Shortsleeve, who on Tuesday said he would disclose travel plans and apply the open records law to the governor's office if elected, and from the Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, a right-leaning watchdog group. 'This isn't about whether the Governor is allowed to take a vacation, it's about transparency and accountability,' MassFiscal Executive Director Paul Craney said Monday. 'Governor Healey left the country, traveled to another continent, and refused to tell the public where she was or when she'd return.' Advertisement
Int'l Business Times
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
'Serious Questions' Over UK Secret Afghan Relocations: PM
Ministers in the UK's last Conservative government have "serious questions to answer" over a secret resettlement plan for thousands of Afghans after a data breach endangered their lives, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Wednesday. Parliamentary Speaker Lindsay Hoyle said the affair raised significant constitutional issues" after it emerged that the previous government had obtained a court order banning media coverage and preventing any scrutiny by parliament. Thousands of Afghans who worked with the UK and their families have been brought to Britain under the programme following the leak. But the 2022 breach and the resettlement plan to protect those involved from potential repercussions only came to light on Tuesday after a court super-gag was lifted. Defence Minister John Healey told parliament a UK official had accidentally leaked a spreadsheet containing the names and details of almost 19,000 Afghans who had asked to be relocated to Britain. It happened in February 2022, just six months after Taliban fighters seized Kabul, he said. In parliament Wednesday, Starmer said his government supported the principle of fulfilling "our obligations to Afghans who served alongside British forces" in the post 9/11 conflict in the South Asian country. Healey had "set out the full extent of the failings that we inherited: a major data breach, a superinjunction, a secret route that has already cost hundreds of millions of pounds", he added. "Ministers who served under the party opposite have serious questions to answer about how this was ever allowed to happen," he said. The nearly two-year-long court ban secured by the previous government prevented any media reporting of the leak. In addition, parliament was not briefed and there was no public knowledge of the resettlement plan and the costs involved. Speaker of Parliament Lindsay Hoyle, who is responsible for the proper administration of the House of Commons, also commented on the affair. "This episode raises significant constitutional issues. I have therefore asked the clerks to consider whether any lessons need to be learned from this case," he told lawmakers. Under the Conservatives the secret programme was put in place in April 2024 to help those "judged to be at the highest risk of reprisals by the Taliban", Healey said told parliament. Some 900 Afghans and 3,600 family members have now been brought to Britain or are in transit under the programme known as the Afghan Response Route, at a cost of around GBP400 million ($535 million). Applications from 600 more people have also been accepted, bringing the estimated total cost of the scheme to GBP850 million. They are among some 36,000 Afghans accepted by Britain under different schemes since the August 2021 fall of Kabul. Former defence minister Ben Wallace said he stood by his decision to seek secrecy from the court in August 2023 and rejected claims of a "cover-up". "I make no apology for applying to the court for an injunction at the time," he said. "If this leak was reported at the time, the existence of the list would put in peril those we needed to help," he told BBC radio. When Labour came to power in July 2024, the scheme was up and running but Healey said he had been "deeply uncomfortable to be constrained from reporting" it to parliament. He estimated the total cost of relocating people to Britain from Afghanistan under the various resettlement schemes at between GBP5.5 billion to GBP6 billion.
India Today
7 hours ago
- Politics
- India Today
Why UK secretly brought in thousands of Afghans, including 'sex offenders'
Thousands of Afghans have been relocated to the UK through a confidential resettlement scheme launched by Britain after a data breach in 2022, when a British defence official inadvertently exposed their personal information. The leak placed them at risk of Taliban retaliation, following the group's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021. Defence Secretary John Healey has since confirmed that the scheme will no longer offer further relocations. A lawyer representing the affected individuals stated they have "strong claims for compensation".advertisementIn February 2022, the personal details of nearly 19,000 people who had applied to move to the UK following the Taliban's takeover in Kabul were leaked, according to a report by the far, about 4,500 Afghans have arrived under the scheme in the UK, the BBC report added. The individuals whose personal details were leaked were only informed last the data was leaked in 2022, the previous Conservative government learned about it in August 2023 when some of the details appeared on social and officials at the Ministry of Defence scrambled into action after discovering that the leaked data had surfaced in a Facebook group. They sought an injunction from the High Court – reportedly the first of its kind requested by a British government – to block further media disclosure, according to The Guardian.A new resettlement scheme, the Afghan Response Route (ARR), was created in haste soon court in the initial trial granted the application "contra mundum" – against the world – and ruled that its existence remain secret, resulting in a superinjunction which remained in place until lifted on Tuesday, according to The DEFENCE MINISTER APOLOGISES FOR THE DATA LEAKBritish Defence Minister John Healey has issued an apology for the data leaked data included details about Members of Parliament and senior military officers who supported applications to help Afghan soldiers who worked with the British military and their families relocate to the UK, news agency Reuters reported."This serious data incident should never have happened," Healey told lawmakers in the House of Commons, Reuters reported."It may have occurred three years ago under the previous government, but to all whose data was compromised I offer a sincere apology," the news agency quoted him as government on Tuesday said it believed 600 Afghan soldiers included in the leak, plus 1,800 of their family members, are still in Afghanistan, according to the BBC scheme is being closed down, but relocation offers already made to those who remain in Afghanistan will be honoured, the BBC reported, citing the government. The scheme has cost GBP 400 million (approximately Rs 43,000 crore) so far and is expected to cost a further GBP 400 million to 450 OFFENDERS AMONG THOSE WHO RELOCATED TO UKadvertisementReform UK leader Nigel Farage has launched a scathing attack on the government over the handling of the Afghan said convicted sex offenders were among the people brought to the UK as part of the government's response to the data leak, without providing evidence for his claim, the UK's Financial Times said no more Afghans involved in the data breach would be offered relocation, citing a government review that found "little evidence of intent from the Taliban to conduct a campaign of retribution against former officials", the Financial Times GOVT FACING BREACH CLAIMS FROM THE AFFECTED INDIVIDUALSThe government is now facing lawsuits from those affected by the Humber, a lawyer at Leigh Day, a leading UK law firm, who has acted for Afghan citizens affected by previous data breaches, said those affected were "likely to have strong claims for substantial compensation" for the anxiety and distress caused by the leak, according to a report in troops were initially sent to Afghanistan in 2001 in response to the September 11 attacks on the US, playing a key role in combat missions until 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 e-mailed to someone outside of government systems by mistake, Reuters reported.- Ends
