MI5 slammed after watchdog finds it ‘misled courts’ over neo-Nazi spy | Politics | News

A scathing report has revealed that senior MI5 officers “misled” investigators into the intelligence agency’s handling of a violent, misogynistic neo-Nazi agent. Once officers confirmed that “X” was one of their agents, they “relied” on a “fake account” that they were allowed to “hijack and proceed with.”

They had claimed (NCND) that they neither confirmed nor denied his role during the watchdog investigation and his misleading response to journalists. The intelligence agency admitted making false statements to three courts about the man and confirmed it had settled a legal claim brought by the victim “without admitting liability”.

MI5 was forced to pay off X’s victim, known as Beth, after she was allegedly attacked with a machete by her former partner, a violent, ‘extremist’ misogynist neo-Nazi who used his MI5 role to forcibly control her.

But the Commissioner of Investigatory Powers published a scathing 213-page report on Agent X.

“The key figure from NCND to the BBC reporter knew what he was doing but failed to report it,” the statement said.

“Others in MI5 knew he had left the NCND but a fake account was taken over and allowed to continue.

“This fake account was subsequently relied upon in injunction cases and judicial review cases before the Investigative Powers Tribunal. Opportunities to correct the position were missed.”

Investigatory Powers Commissioner Sir Brian Leveson said: “What makes this case particularly grave is that IPCO and the courts were misled. Failures of candor undermine the very basis of oversight and accountability.”

The IPT, a specialist tribunal investigating allegations against UK intelligence services, said in July last year that MI5’s provision of false evidence “gives real cause for concern” and “must never happen again”.

MI5 Director-General Sir Ken McCallum said: “MI5 recognizes without hesitation the seriousness of our failures in these proceedings.

“I reiterate my previous apologies to both courts for the incorrect evidence provided and our slowness in understanding what was happening.

“I also extend my apologies to Beth who has suffered additional distress as a result of her mistake in responding to MI5’s serious allegations.

“As legal proceedings are still ongoing, I cannot comment on specific details today.

“But I can say that MI5 has done a lot over the last 18 months to improve our policies and processes to ensure that we do not find ourselves in this situation again.

“We have strengthened our record-keeping processes and updated the way we present evidence in legal proceedings.

“With valuable input from independent experts, we have updated our policies and training on how to identify and respond to information that suggests individuals may be at risk of harm.

“We will use today’s comprehensive and detailed report to target our further improvement efforts.

“MI5 staff are working day and night to keep this country safe.

“We are absolutely right. In this case, we fell far behind what the public expected and deserved.

“The best response MI5 can give is to ensure that we consistently achieve the highest professional standards in carrying out our vital duty. I know that the Home Secretary, the Investigative Powers Commissioner and the Parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee will rightly continue to hold us to account.”

Beth claimed her abusive ex-partner boasted about being a paid informant for MI5.

In shocking video footage published by the BBC, it is claimed that his ex-partner attacked him with a machete.

And ‘X’ had previously been reported to the police abroad due to allegations of domestic violence against his previous partner.

MI5 confirmed that “X” was one of their agents, refuting the claim that they never confirm the identity of an agent under a principle known as “neither confirm nor deny”.

Beth took legal action against MI5, claiming the intelligence agency had violated her human rights by failing to protect her from agent X.

He took the case to the Investigative Powers Tribunal (IPT). Judges ruled that most of the case should be kept secret after MI5 said it had not confirmed the identities of the agents.