Urgent question on leak of information from UK Ambassador to the US
8 July 2019 (updated on 8 July 2019)
Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Tom Tugendhat, asked an urgent question following news that the UK Government has launched an inquiry into a leak of emails from the UK Ambassador in Washington which were critical of the Trump administration.
The UK Government has launched an inquiry into a leak of emails from the UK Ambassador in Washington, Sir Kim Darroch.
Rt Hon Sir Alan Duncan MP, Minister of State, responded to the urgent question, condemning the leak of information and reiterated the confidence of the Government in Sir Kim Darroch. said:
"The Prime Minister and the British public expect our ambassadors to provide ministers with an honest and unvarnished assessment of the politics in their country. We pay our ambassadors to be candid".
He said that the investigation into the leak would be thorough and wide-ranging.
Responding to the Government, Tom Tugendhat expressed concern, saying;
"I fear that we are developing a culture of leaks and that will be extremely detrimental to the UK. They damage our reputation, impact on our ability to function effectively and undermine our relationships with our allies".
The Opposition also condemned the leak as damaging to the confidence of civil servants to honestly feed back their insights and opinions.
- Watch Parliament TV: urgent question on leak of information from UK Ambassador to the US
- Read Commons Hansard: urgent question on leak of information from UK Ambassador to the US
Follow the @HouseofCommons on Twitter for updates on the UK House of Commons Chamber.
Image: FCO
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