UK Lawmakers File Legal Case Against PM Johnson Over Russian Interference Response
Source: Reuters
LONDON (Reuters) - A group of British opposition lawmakers have filed a legal case against Prime Minister Boris Johnson over what they say is his failure to protect the public's right to free and fair elections after allegations of Russian interference.
A parliamentary report released in July said the government failed to find out whether Russia meddled in the 2016 referendum on membership of the EU, and recommended the intelligence services investigate further.
Johnson's government immediately rejected that recommendation and said it had not been complacent over the "enduring and significant threat" posed by Russia. Russia denied any interference. The legal action launched on Thursday challenges Johnson's response and seeks a judicial review, claiming the government has breached the right to free elections enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights.
"The sovereignty and security of our country, alongside the integrity of our democracy, is at stake, and this government's wilfully turning a blind eye cannot be allowed to pass unchallenged," said Caroline Lucas, one of six lawmakers from parliament's upper and lower chambers named in the claim.
Read more: https://in.reuters.com/article/britain-politics-russia-idINKBN27E0V3
- The Guardian, Legal Action Taken Against PM Over Refusal To Investigate Kremlin Meddling
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/oct/29/legal-action-taken-against-pm-over-refusal-to-investigate-kremlin-meddling
..“The Russia report raised a series of deeply troubling questions,” Smith said. “We don’t know if the UK spy agencies were caught napping over Russian interference and didn’t take it seriously, or if the spooks were given tacit instruction [by politicians] not to look into this.”
Johnson refused to release the Russia report before last year’s general election. It found “credible evidence” the UK was a target for “political influence operations” and “disinformation campaigns” carried out by Vladimir Putin’s operatives. Details were hidden in a classified annex.
Lord Strasburger described Lord Ricketts’ support for the action as “very significant”, stressing: “He was about as senior as it gets in the intelligence community and if he is worried about the government’s refusal to investigate, we all should be”...
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Birds of a feather.
