MI5 spared contempt proceedings despite lying to three courts
Three senior judges, including the Lady Chief Justice, ruled that MI5 and its officers will not face contempt of court proceedings, although the agency admitted giving false evidence to three courts about an abusive informant known as Agent X. A contempt case would be too complex for the court, they said; police could instead investigate possible misconduct in public office.
“It would not be in the public interest to initiate contempt proceedings against any individual officer, against the Director General of MI5 or against MI5 itself,” the court said. Sir John Goldring’s inquiry found in July that one senior officer lied repeatedly and identified “serious and systemic failures”. Sir Ken McCallum repeated his apology to the victim, known as Beth, who said she was “deeply disappointed”. The Home Office would not say whether it will refer the matter to police. Of the two officers most criticised, one has resigned and the other faces internal disciplinary proceedings.