In a landmark ruling, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) has determined that the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and Metropolitan Police unlawfully carried out covert surveillance on two Belfast-based investigative journalists, Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey. The pair, who produced the award-winning documentary “No Stone Unturned” alleging police collusion in a notorious Troubles-era massacre, say they have “no doubt” that reporters across the UK continue to be targeted by similar spying operations to this day.
Journalists’ Phone Records Accessed Hundreds of Times
The extent of police spying on members of the press was laid bare during the IPT proceedings. Disclosures revealed that in addition to Birney and McCaffrey being unlawfully surveilled, authorities had accessed the phone records of several BBC journalists who worked on the broadcaster’s Spotlight investigative program in Northern Ireland.
Moreover, a PSNI report issued in response to the case admitted that over the past 14 years, the force has sought the communications data of a staggering 323 Northern Ireland journalists and 500 lawyers. This is despite a series of court rulings reinforcing the vital importance of protecting journalists’ sources and material.
“There is no doubt in my mind that there is a dragnet operation in place today [to find journalists’ sources],” said Trevor Birney. “There seems to be an endemic culture, not only in Northern Ireland but in Britain.”
An “Endemic Surveillance Culture” Across UK Police
Birney suspects that the unlawful spying tactics used by the PSNI are likely common practice among police forces in mainland Britain, particularly when journalists make inquiries that may not reflect favorably on law enforcement. As a smaller regional force, the PSNI were likely relying on the expertise of the security services and London’s Metropolitan Police, who were also named as defendants in the IPT claim.
“We don’t for a minute believe that this was a PSNI playbook,” Birney emphasized. “Can you imagine the number of Guardian or Observer journalists over the years who’ve been ringing Scotland Yard about a story that isn’t really in their [the police’s] favor?”
His colleague Barry McCaffrey shares these concerns that police spying on journalists is far more widespread than the IPT case revealed. Even though the PSNI claimed to have halted the practice during the legal proceedings, McCaffrey remains skeptical.
“We don’t know whether the day after the judgment, the PSNI pushed the button on all that surveillance again – that’s scary,” he said. “We suspect that when the PSNI want to go after our comms data, they call in the Met because they know that the policing board here can’t hold the Met to account.”
Rare Victory Raises Questions About Oversight Body
While Birney and McCaffrey’s case represents a crucial victory for press freedom, such rulings by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal are exceedingly rare. Only around 1% of claims heard by the IPT since its formation have been upheld, leading the journalists to question the oversight body’s commitment to protecting members of the press from unlawful spying.
The two reporters were dismayed to learn that the IPT had been holding secret investigatory sessions with the PSNI, MI5 and GCHQ for nearly four years without their knowledge after they filed their complaint. “We have no idea what was said so there is no way to know the full picture,” said Birney. “We’ve been allowed to look through the letterbox of a very dark house, and all we’ve been allowed to see is what’s in immediate view.”
Calls for Further Scrutiny of Police Surveillance
In light of the IPT’s findings, Conservative MP David Davis, who supported Birney and McCaffrey’s case, is calling on every police force in the country to disclose the number of journalists and lawyers whose communications records they have accessed. He plans to write to each chief constable demanding they provide figures equivalent to those revealed in the PSNI’s report.
The Metropolitan Police, for its part, insists it “continues to follow the latest codes of practice around the use of RIPA in a responsible and lawful manner.” MI5 declined to comment on the case. But for the two journalists at the heart of this landmark ruling, a public inquiry is needed to fully expose the scale and nature of police snooping on reporters.
“The house remains dark and that’s what we’ve got to illuminate,” Birney said. Shedding light on the extent of unlawful spying, they believe, is crucial to holding law enforcement accountable and safeguarding the ability of investigative journalists to protect their sources and continue their watchdog role.
