§ 19. Mr. CashTo ask the Solicitor-General if she will make a statement on evidential deficiency in the Katharine Gun case. [162136]
§ The Solicitor-GeneralThe decision to offer no further evidence against Katharine Gun was made by the Crown Prosecution Service as an independent prosecuting authority. It was made solely on legal grounds and in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors.
There was, in the Gun case, a clear prima facie breach of section 1 of the Official Secrets Act 1989. However, senior treasury counsel advised that there was no longer a realistic prospect of convicting Ms Gun. The Director of Public Prosecutions agreed. The evidential deficiency arose from the prosecution's inability, within the current statutory framework, to disprove the defence of necessity in this case.