Former Defence Secretary Raises Alarm Over Potential Taliban Entry to UK
Sir Ben Wallace, the former defence secretary, has suggested that Taliban militants may have been granted asylum in Britain following the fall of Kabul in 2021. During evidence given to the Commons defence committee, Sir Ben could not rule out the possibility that some fighters managed to slip through the vetting process after the chaotic and bloody evacuation of the Afghan capital.
Scandal Unfolds Over Afghan Data Leak Disaster
The comments were made as part of an inquiry into the Afghan data leak disaster, which saw the Government admit it had put 100,000 people 'at risk of death' from vengeful Taliban warlords. This catastrophic breach involved a database of those who had applied to the UK for sanctuary, with the fallout costing UK taxpayers an estimated £7 billion over five years, a figure set to rise due to ongoing compensation claims.
In 2023, ministers launched one of the biggest peacetime evacuations in modern British history, known as Operation Rubific, to rescue thousands and airlift them to the UK in secret. This operation was kept hidden by a superinjunction, as exclusively discovered by the Daily Mail.
Questioning the Vetting Process
When questioned by Conservative MP Lincoln Jopp about whether the UK 'probably did let some Taliban in', Sir Ben replied: 'I'm sure in a large-scale evacuation we didn't get everything right, but ultimately we tried to vet and did as much as we could and that's where we got the leak.' He added that he could not discuss details of the Afghanistan Response Route or how the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy evolved after his departure.
The Taliban's rapid reconquest of Afghanistan after US President Joe Biden withdrew the last American troops in August 2021 led to a surge in applications to the UK's ARAP scheme, designed to help Afghans who had worked with British forces. This prompted the last-minute evacuation from Kabul airport, dubbed Operation Pitting by Sir Ben, who described it as 'Dunkirk done by WhatsApp'.
Ministry of Defence Versus Home Office Control
Sir Ben emphasised his determination that the Ministry of Defence controlled the ARAP scheme, keeping it separate from the Home Office's Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme. He admitted this forced the MoD to 'effectively design and make immigration databases from scratch', adding: 'Maybe, in retrospect, I should have just handed it over and let the Home Office run its own immigration system.' However, he expressed little confidence in the Home Office's immigration system under any government.
Damaging Revelations and Democratic Accountability
Further damaging revelations have emerged, including that ministers misled the High Court about the secret Afghan airlift. The public and Parliament were kept in the dark for two years, and even the judge was not given the full picture. While signing off £7 billion of public money without taxpayers' knowledge, ministers were supposed to keep Mr Justice Chamberlain updated, but the MoD misled him over the timing of a crucial internal review.
This has led MPs to question whether the MoD was cynically 'buying time' to extend its unprecedented shutdown of democratic processes. The judge had granted a draconian gagging order despite concerns it was 'completely shutting down' democratic accountability.
Official Response and Security Checks
A spokesperson for the MoD stated: 'There is no evidence to suggest any member of the Taliban has been relocated through the ARP. As the public would rightly expect, anyone coming to the UK must pass strict security and entry checks before being able to relocate. If they don't pass these checks, they are not granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK.'
The ongoing inquiry continues to uncover the complexities and failures of the UK's response to the Afghan crisis, raising serious questions about national security and governmental transparency.
