§ Mr. Leadbitterasked the Prime Minister if she will refer to the Security Commission the activities of an individual whose name has been given to her by the hon. Member for Hartlepool; and if she will make a statement.
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§ Mr. BiffenI have been asked to reply.
As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence told the House on 9 February 1983, Commodore Gerhardt attended three training courses at the royal naval engineering college and other naval establishments between 1956 and 1964. During the final stages of that training, he would have had access to classified information. The assessment of this matter that has been undertaken confirms that any classified information he gained so long ago would be unlikely to have much value today. There is no reason to believe that he has had access to any additional classified information from British sources since that time, and my right hon. Friend does not consider that a reference to the Security Commission would be justified.