Vital court evidence requires secure disclosure

Summary

The civil courts system should be reformed to allow sensitive information that could play a significant role in resolving national security cases to be divulged in a secure environment before judges.

In the ‘Justice and Security Green Paper’ (Cm. 8194), the Ministry of Justice argues that in light of recent court rulings, improvements should be made to ensure that a case is considered fairly and fully.

The proposals in this consultation cover three broad areas:

enhancing procedural fairness;
safeguarding material; and
reform of intelligence oversight.

Sensitive information is produced and received by the Government to safeguard national security; it must be protected appropriately, as failure to do so may compromise investigations, endanger lives and ultimately lessen its ability to keep the country safe.

In recent years, a growing number of cases have challenged Government decisions and actions in the national security sphere and often involve information that under current rules cannot be disclosed in a courtroom.

Without all the required information the UK justice system is either unable to pass judgment and cases collapse or are settled without a judge reaching any conclusions.

This paper looks for solutions to improve current arrangements while upholding the Government's commitment to the rule of law.

Also addressed is the need for public reassurance that the national security work is robustly scrutinised, and that the scrutinising bodies are credible and effective.

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