INTELLIGENCE CHIEFS DRAFT SECRETS LAW

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP96B01172R000300020030-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 28, 2005
• Sequence Number: 30
• Publication Date: April 9, 1984
• Content Type: NSPR

Approved For ffirt~(
-i; 1 172P,000300020030-5
intelligence chiefs
draft secrets law
The small group of officials
and security chiefs who advised
the Prime Minister of intelli-
gence matters have instructed
that preparatory work should be
undertaken on a draft law, to
prohibit the naming in public of
M15 and M16 officers and
agents.
The enterprise is at a very
early stage and no plan has been
put to Mrs Margaret Thatcher
and the tiny Cabinet committee
she chairs on security and
intelligence. Given the priority
afforded by the Prime Minister
to the maintenance of security,
it is likely she would agree to
such a statute if recommended
by intelligence chiefs and her
official advisers.
Such a bill, which would be
modelled on the United States
Intelligence Identities Protec-
tion Act, 1982, would not be
included in next autumn's
Queen's Speech, but be an-
nounced in Parliament without
warning. There is no possibility,
however. of its happening in the
present sessions.
There is concern in Whitehall
that neither the Official Secrets
Act nor the D-notices, the
voluntary system of self-censor-
ship practised by the British
media on certain defence and
intelligence matters, are ad-
equate instruments for curbing
the practice of naming British
intelligence officers, serving or
retired.
The issue has been a long-
standing concern of the intelli-
gence community. It re-
emerged last year with the
publication of British Intelli-
,ence and Covert Action by
Jonathan Block and Patrick
Fitzgerald.
An appendix named British
officials it claimed were, or had
been, involved in British intelli-
gence.
Although Whitehall believes
the book is riddled with errors;
the consensus it that its
publication was "indefensible"
as, unlike most other studies of
British intelligence, it covered
events and personalities "so
near to the present day", as one
insider put it.
The contrast between the
voluntary nature of D-notice
No 6 on "British Security. and
Intelligence Services and the
United States statute is striking.
The D-notice "requests" that
nothing shall be published
without reference to the Sec-
retary of the Defence, Press and
Broadcasting Committee, which
identifies officers ,
The US Act has a scale of
penalties for those who; expose
agents, ranging from ten years',.
imprisonment and: a?$50',000
tine for former intelligence
officers who expose colleague'
to three years' imprisonment
and a $ 15,000 fine for outsiders
who publish such information.
Approved For Release 2005/08/03 : CIA-RDP96B01172R000300020030-5