Grant Shapps Defends Use of Superinjunction to Protect Afghan Data Leak

The former defence secretary Grant Shapps has defended the use of a superinjunction to suppress a data breach that led to the UK government relocating 15,000 Afghans. The Afghanistan Response Route (ARR) was created to address a leak of personal information about 18,700 Afghans who had applied to come to the UK. Details of SAS and MI6 members were also leaked. Shapps, who was defence secretary at the time, focused on saving lives and preventing further leaks. The superinjunction was lifted after a judge deemed the threat to the Afghans less significant. The intelligence and security committee will investigate the incident. Shapps supported calls for transparency but emphasized the sensitivity of the situation. Despite keeping the order in place during his tenure, Shapps expressed surprise at its duration and believed that lives were saved as a result.

In a statement, the current defence secretary, John Healey, apologized for the data breach after the superinjunction was lifted.