David Lammy said the leak of details from a top-secret meeting of the National Security Council devoted to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran was an “absolute travesty” and called for an investigation.
The remarks followed reports that emerged over the weekend describing disagreements within the cabinet during discussions at the National Security Council—a body whose deliberations are protected under the Official Secrets Act. According to media accounts, the dispute centered on whether the United States should be allowed to use British military bases for strikes on Iran.
As the Spectator reported, at a meeting last Friday Keir Starmer proposed allowing those bases to be used to carry out defensive strikes against Iranian targets. The proposal, however, was opposed by Ed Miliband, Rachel Reeves, Yvette Cooper, and Shabana Mahmood. The account was subsequently picked up by several other media outlets.
Permission to use British bases for strikes on Iranian missile facilities was granted only on Sunday—after Tehran launched a series of retaliatory attacks against countries across the Middle East.
Asked on Friday about the unity of the cabinet, Lammy told BBC Breakfast: «It is an absolute travesty that any leak could have come from a National Security Council meeting. Ministers must be able to set out their assessments, supported by the chief of the defence staff, our intelligence agencies and other specialists, and at the same time we must do nothing that could place our people at risk».
He added: «I will not discuss the content of National Security Council meetings».
The justice secretary stressed that the government remains united. In his words, «the cabinet is absolutely united and supports a calm and measured approach in this situation. We have made clear that we will not take part in offensive actions, but we will defend our allies and our people in the region. The cabinet fully supports the prime minister».
A leak of information from the National Security Council is considered a serious breach. In 2019, Prime Minister Theresa May dismissed then defence secretary Gavin Williamson following a similar incident.
Speaking on Sky News, Lammy again described the possible leak as a “travesty” and said it must be investigated. «I do not recognise these reports and I have to say that I consider it a travesty when anyone discloses details of a National Security Council meeting, because it could place British lives at risk. I hope this incident will be properly investigated», he said.
At a press conference on Thursday, the prime minister declined to comment directly on the Spectator’s report. Asked about cabinet unity and Britain’s decision not to allow the United States to use British bases for offensive operations, Starmer instead set out the timeline of contacts between London and Washington.
«There was no request from the United States in the form to which we later agreed until Saturday afternoon. Therefore on Friday there was no specific decision that needed to be taken.
A decision was required once a formal request was received—this happened on Saturday afternoon, closer to the evening. By that point we had already been taking steps to strengthen our own capabilities.
Then, as was to be expected, over the course of the following day we discussed the details with the American side and ultimately reached a decision on Sunday. I announced it on Sunday evening, at around eight or nine o’clock».