15 July 2025: BBC: Thousands of Afghans have moved to the UK under a secret scheme which was set up after a British official inadvertently leaked their data, it can be revealed.
In February 2022, the personal details of nearly 19,000 people who had applied to move to the UK after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan were leaked.
The previous government learned of the breach in August 2023 when some of the details appeared on Facebook.
A new resettlement scheme for those on the leaked list was set up nine months later, and has seen 4,500 Afghans arrive in the UK so far.
But the existence of the leak and relocations were kept secret after the government obtained a super-injunction stopping it from becoming public.
Details of the major data breach, the response and the number of Afghans granted the right to live in the UK as a result only came to light on Tuesday after a High Court judge ruled, external the gagging order should be lifted.
The leak contained the names, contact details and some family information of people potentially at risk of harm from the Taliban.
The government also revealed on Tuesday:
- The Ministry of Defence (MoD) believes 600 Afghan soldiers included in the leak, plus 1,800 of their family members, are still in Afghanistan
- The scheme is being closed down, but relocation offers already made to those who remain in Afghanistan will be honoured
- The secret scheme – officially called the Afghan Relocation Route – has cost £400m so far, and is expected to cost a further £400m to £450m
- The breach was committed mistakenly by an unnamed official at the MoD
- People whose details were leaked were only informed on Tuesday
Speaking in the House of Commons, Defence Secretary John Healey offered a “sincere apology” to those whose details had been included in the leak, which came to light when some appeared on Facebook.
[…] Tuesday’s disclosure dates back to the August 2021 withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, which saw the Taliban retake power and quickly surround the capital Kabul.
The leak involved the names of people who had applied for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) scheme, which the UK government set up to rapidly process applications by people who feared reprisals from the Taliban and move them to the UK.
The evacuation – which saw 36,000 Afghans moved to the UK – has already been heavily criticised in the years since it was launched, with a 2022 inquiry by the Foreign Affairs Committee finding it was a “disaster” and a “betrayal”.
When the government set up a new relocation scheme last year in response to the leak, members of the press quickly learned about the plans.
The government asked a judge to impose an injunction on the media. The court then imposed a type of order which prevented outlets from reporting any detail of the leak, or even that the injunction itself existed. Healey said he was not aware of any other similar injunctions being in place.
He told the House even he had been prevented from speaking about the breach because of the “unprecedented” injunction, after being informed while still shadow defence secretary.
Reading a summary of his judgment in court, Mr Justice Chamberlain said the gagging order had “given rise to serious free speech concerns”.
He continued: “The super-injunction had the effect of completely shutting down the ordinary mechanisms of accountability which operate in a democracy.
“This led to what I describe as a ‘scrutiny vacuum’.” […]
Read more: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg8zy78787o
15 July 2025: Gov.uk: Data incident affecting applicants to the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy Scheme and Afghanistan Locally Employed Staff Ex-Gratia Scheme
This page provides information and guidance for those who may have been affected.