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Outrage over the Damian Green affair shouldn?t be one-sided

By John Hirst

Outrage over the Damian Green affair shouldn?t be one-sided

The Damian Green affair has become muddled by anger and outrage. Several distinct strands about the position of civil servants and MPs need to be disentangled.

First, Christopher Galley, the self-confessed leaker, has unquestionably breached the Civil Service code and the ties of loyalty and trust that apply in any large organisation. There is no right to pass information to an opposition MP, even if you are worried about how your department is being run. Complaints procedures, including appeals up to the Civil Service Commissioners, exist to deal with such concerns.

Related content:

Mandy stokes up the fire...

Lord Mandelson stoked up the row over the arrest of the Tory frontbencher Damian Green today by accusing the Conservatives of using it as a ?smokescreen? to cover his involvement in a series of Home Office leaks.

While accepting there was real anger among Conservative MPs over Mr Green?s arrest and the police search of his House of Commons office, the Business Secretary said that much of the furore was a ?self-serving? attempt to distract attention from the offences he is suspected of committing.

And, Marcel Berlins says that there are graver injustices in the country which are going ignored because of all the fuss kicked up over the Galley/Green affair...

The fuss over the Damian Green affair has been excessive. Parliamentary democracy is not at risk

Finally, a timely reminder to civil servants from the most senior civil servant...

Britain's most senior civil servant has reminded Whitehall staff that it is their duty to serve the Government of the day, following the arrest of a Home Office official for allegedly leaking documents to the Tories.

Full post as published by prisonlawinsideout on December 03, 2008 (boomark / email).