2nd Report - Espionage cases and the Official Secrets Acts

Select Committee
National Security Strategy (Joint Committee) HC 1414 3 December 2025
Report Status Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations 21 items (9 recs)
Source View on Parliament website
Government Response (AI assessment · 21 of 21 classified)
Accepted 12
Accepted in Part 1
Acknowledged 4
Not Addressed 3
Rejected 1
Government response
2nd Special Report - Espionage cases and the Official Secrets Acts: Government and Crown Prosecution Service Responses · published 12 Feb 2026
Read the government response ↗ Response on the tracker
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Recommendations & Conclusions

1 results
10 Conclusion Rejected
Some processes were excessively protracted, with extensive to and fro.
Conclusion
Some processes were excessively protracted, with extensive to and fro. From the outside some aspects look shambolic. The process for securing the DNSA’s second witness statement took nearly eight months, for example. The reason for this delay remains obscure to … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agreed timely evidence acquisition is a priority but rejected the committee's conclusion of an eight-month delay in securing the DNSA's second witness statement. They provided a detailed timeline and explanation of the complex review process, arguing that work was ongoing throughout.
Cabinet Office
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