Human rights organisations Amnesty International and the Committee on Administration of Justice have written to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to ask him to establish a public inquiry into covert surveillance in Northern Ireland by MI5, and the establishment of the Commissioner for Covert Law Enforcement for Northern Ireland following publication of a report detailing a catalogue of wrongdoing by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The McCullough Review into police surveillance in Northern Ireland has identified multiple cases of covert surveillance by the PSNI against journalists and lawyers, including, in his view, unlawful actions by the police in breach of the Human Rights Act.

The conclusion in the McCullough Review that PSNI powers were not being routinely abused is ‘subject to the significant qualification’ in relation to the PSNI ‘defensive operation’ described as a ‘practice of cross checking an enormous list of journalists’ numbers (provided or obtained for other purposes) against PSNI communication system records’. (p18, para 34)

Key findings from review

Journalists targeted

1. 20 unlawful uses of covert powers to attempt to identify journalists’ sources – more than double the figure given to the Policing Board in June 2024.
2. 8 journalists subject to unlawful use of powers to seek to identify their sources.
3. ‘Washing through’ journalists’ phone numbers against police records in the ‘defensive operation’ a likely breach of Articles 8 and 10, Human Rights Act; PSNI practice only renounced in 2024.
4. Directed surveillance on four occasions against journalists despite the June 2024 report to Policing Board that none occurred.
5. Directed surveillance of journalist Donal MacIntyre’s social media likely unlawful.
6. PSNI failed to delete data of journalists Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney in breach of court undertaking.

Oversight notification failures

1. PSNI failed to notify Investigatory Powers Commissioner’s Office (IPCO)of covert activity against journalists.
2. PSNI failed to disclose an instance of obtaining data from Barry McCaffrey’s communications data to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT).
3. Inaccurate information supplied to NI Policing Board.

Targeting of lawyers

1. 2 instances of directed surveillance of lawyers, including in a court building, without proper authorisation.

 The McCullough Review does not cover the covert surveillance activities of the secret service MI5 in Northern Ireland. Last week it was revealed at the the IPT that MI5 breached the human rights of former BBC journalist Vincent Kearney by accessing his telecommunications records in 2006 and 2009. Further cases involving Northern Ireland journalists are now subject to ongoing proceedings at the Tribunal.

Patrick Corrigan, Northern Ireland Director of Amnesty International UK, said:

“This report exposes a disturbing pattern of unlawful covert surveillance of journalists, with the PSNI showing clear disregard for press freedom and the rule of law.

“The scale of the wrongdoing is alarming, from repeated attempts to identify reporters’ sources to covert operations concealed from oversight bodies.

“But questions remain. How far has MI5 gone in unlawfully monitoring journalists in Northern Ireland? A free press simply cannot function under the shadow of state surveillance. That is why we are asking the Secretary of State to set up a full public inquiry. Only full disclosure can restore trust and safeguard the rights of journalists in Northern Ireland.”

Daniel Holder, Director of the Committee on Administration of Justice, said:

“The McCullough Review has done a thorough job, yet it should not have taken McCullough to get to the bottom of PSNI surveillance. There is a current oversight mechanism the UK Investigatory Powers Commissioners Office (IPCO) that missed this.

“This was not the mechanism that was supposed to be in place on the back of the Good Friday Agreement. The Patten commission had recommended a specific ‘Commissioner for Covert Law Enforcement in Northern Ireland’ to ensure covert policing techniques were being used within the law. This unimplemented commitment should now be taken forward.”