May’s firm action over leak
British PM fires Defence Secretary as her leadership comes under pressure
British opposition MPs have called for a police inquiry after British Prime Minister Theresa May fired her Defence Secretary for revealing secret discussions about Huawei’s role in Britain.
May fired Gavin Williamson, a former government whip famous for keeping a tarantula on his desk, as she tries to assert control over a government that has become dominated by the battle to succeed her.
Williamson denies he was responsible for the leak from a National Security Council meeting.
Opposition MPs, meanwhile, said there should be an investigation into
whether the Official Secrets Act had been breached.
Peter Rickets, a former national security adviser and a cross-bench peer, told BBC’s Newsnight that on the face of it the leak was a breach of the act and police should be considering an inquiry.
The disclosure of details of the National Security Council meeting, within hours of it taking place, outraged security officials and prompted ministers to write to May demanding an investigation.
They suggested that leaking details of the Government’s most secret meetings was being done to try to secure advantage in the race under way in the ruling Conservative Party to succeed May.
May has grown used to leaks from Cabinet meetings on Brexit, as ministers fight to get their version of events out first.
But this was a matter of national security.
Cabinet Secretary Mark Sedwill began an investigation, and in a meeting with Williamson yesterday, May told the Defence Secretary he hadn’t co-operated to “the same standard” as others. “I put to you the latest information from the investigation, which provides compelling evidence suggesting your responsibility for the unauthorised disclosure,” May wrote in her letter sacking Williamson.
“No other credible version of events to explain this leak has been identified.”
May’s move to clamp down on unruly ministers came on the eve of local elections, in which the Tories are expected to face a drubbing for their failure to deliver Brexit.
The meeting last week was convened to discuss the results of a six-month review of Britain’s telecom supply chain, including Huawei’s role in the rollout of so-called 5G networks. Britain is set to toughen the rules under which the Chinese firm operates in the country while stopping short of an outright ban, according to people familiar with the matter.
The US has warned countries not to include equipment from Huawei or other Chinese suppliers. Huawei denies that its equipment is vulnerable to state espionage.
Williamson has previously tried to use confrontation with China as a way to burnish his credentials as Defence Secretary.