Zircon Affair
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The Zircon affair was an incident in 1986 and 1987 caused by the planned broadcast on the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
of a television programme about the ultimately cancelled Zircon signals intelligence satellite, as part of the six-part ''Secret Society'' series. It raised many important issues in the
British constitution The constitution of the United Kingdom comprises the written and unwritten arrangements that establish the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland as a political body. Unlike in most countries, no official attempt has been made to c ...
, particularly concerning
parliamentary privilege Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties ...
and "gagging orders".


The Zircon affair


Development of programme

In November 1985 the Scottish investigative journalist Duncan Campbell was commissioned by
BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...
to present and research a six part, half-hour documentary series called ''Secret Society'', produced by Brian Barr.
GCHQ Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is an intelligence and security organisation responsible for providing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance (IA) to the government and armed forces of the United Kingdom. Primar ...
became aware that a BBC Scotland crew were filming at
RAF Menwith Hill Royal Air Force Menwith Hill (RAF Menwith Hill) is a Royal Air Force List of Royal Air Force stations, station near Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, which provides communications and intelligence support services to the United Kingdom and th ...
, and when Campbell interviewed the former
Chief Scientific Adviser to the Ministry of Defence The Chief Scientific Adviser to the UK's Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence is responsible for providing strategic management of science and technology issues in the MOD, most directly through the MOD research budget of well o ...
Ronald Mason in August 1986 he mentioned the Zircon Project (regarded as "exceptionally secret").Nicholas Wilkinson, "Secrecy and the Media: The Official History of the United Kingdom's D-Notice system", Routledge, London, 2009, , p. 413. Campbell had planned to use an episode of ''Secret Society'' to reveal the existence of Zircon, but found while researching the programme in mid-1986 that the head of the
Public Accounts Committee A public accounts committee (PAC) is a committee within a legislature whose role is to study public audits, invite ministers, permanent secretaries or other ministry officials to the committee for questioning, and report on their findings subseque ...
(PAC),
Robert Sheldon Robert Edward Sheldon, Baron Sheldon PC (born Isaac Ezra Shamash; 13 September 1923 – 2 February 2020) was a British Labour Party politician and life peer who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Ashton under Lyne from 1964 to 2001. ...
, knew nothing of the project. The Public Accounts Committee is a select committee of the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
, responsible for overseeing government expenditures. It had been agreed between Parliament and the British government that expensive military projects should be subject to scrutiny by the committee, and Campbell felt that Sheldon's ignorance of the Zircon project was evidence of the violation of this agreement. The concealment of Zircon, which had an estimated cost of £500 million (equivalent to £ billion in ), from the committee mirrored the parliamentary secrecy over a previous defence project, the
Chevaline Chevaline () was a system to improve the penetrability of the warheads used by the UK Polaris programme, British Polaris nuclear weapons system. Devised as an answer to the improved Soviet Union, Soviet A-35 anti-ballistic missile system, anti-b ...
programme to enhance the Polaris nuclear missile. The previous head of the PAC, Lord Barnett, had been recently appointed the BBC Vice-Chairman. Barnett had withdrawn from a planned interview with Campbell for the programme after his BBC appointment, upset at the nature of the questioning that Sheldon had faced, who had accused Campbell of setting him up.


Intervention by BBC management

The
Director-General of the BBC The director-general of the British Broadcasting Corporation is chief executive and (from 1994) editor-in-chief of the BBC. The post-holder was formerly appointed by the Board of Governors of the BBC (for the period 1927 to 2007) and then the ...
,
Alasdair Milne Alasdair David Gordon Milne (8 October 19308 January 2013) was a British television producer and executive. He had a long career at the BBC, where he was eventually promoted to Director-General, and was described by ''The Independent'' as "one ...
, later wrote that the Secretary of the D-Notice Committee made "remonstration noises" after the ''Secret Society'' series was announced at the launch of BBC 2's autumn schedule. According to the official history of the D-Notice Committee, the committee's secretary Rear Admiral W. A. Higgins had been prompted solely by the appearance of the series in the BBC's autumn 1986 publicity, and was not himself then aware of the Zircon Project. A meeting of the BBC governors was held on 13 November 1986, chaired by Marmaduke Hussey. Hussey had been recommended as chairman of the BBC Board of Governors by Conservative government ministers. Opposition to Campbell from governors at the meeting came from Daphne Park, the former
MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
operative, who said that Campbell was a "destroyer" who the BBC should never have employed, and the former diplomat
Curtis Keeble Sir Herbert Ben Curtis Keeble (18 September 1922 – 6 December 2008) was a British diplomat and Ambassador to the Soviet Union between 1978 and 1982. Early life He was born in Chingford in 1922 and attended Clacton County High School and Qu ...
. Hussey subsequently expressed the negative views of the governors to Milne after the meeting. Milne met the
Director of the Government Communications Headquarters __NOTOC__ The Director of the Government Communications Headquarters is the highest-ranking official in the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), a British intelligence agency that specialises in signals intelligence, information assurance ...
,
Peter Marychurch Sir Peter Harvey Marychurch (13 June 1927 – 21 May 2017) was Director of the British signals intelligence agency, GCHQ, a post he held from 1983 to 1989. Career Educated at The John Lyon School, Marychurch served in the Royal Air Force imme ...
, on 5 December 1986, on the same day that Alan Protheroe, the Assistant Director-General of the BBC, had written to Milne at his home, saying that the Zircon episode should not be transmitted. Protheroe was responsible for supervising journalism at the BBC, and was the BBC's member on the D-Notice Committee. Protheroe believed that the Zircon episode would damage national security after speaking to the
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
. Initial cuts of all six programmes in the series were then viewed by Milne, who later showed the series to the governors. The governors subsequently felt that, barring a few changes, the series would be suitable for broadcast, except for the Zircon episode. However, not all governors were as opposed to the episode as Protheroe was. The governors held two further meetings before Christmas 1986, at which Milne was "hounded unpleasantly over ''Secret Society''". Milne finally made a decision not to broadcast the Zircon episode during the Christmas holiday.


Revelation of issue and government action

The Zircon affair was publicly revealed by ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'' on 18 January 1987, with the headline "BBC Gag on £500m Defence secret". An
injunction An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable rem ...
was obtained by the Attorney General on 21 January, restraining Campbell from talking or writing about the contents of the episode. On 22 January, Campbell published an article in the ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
'' against which the government issued an injunction. Campbell's article was sourced to a former employee of GCHQ and four unnamed defence officials, and the
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
instructed police from
Special Branch Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security and Intelligence (information gathering), intelligence in Policing in the United Kingdom, British, Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, ...
to find their identities to establish whether the Official Secrets Act had been breached. Under the authority of a warrant under section 9 of the
Official Secrets Act 1911 The Official Secrets Act 1911 ( 1 & 2 Geo. 5. c. 28) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It replaced the Official Secrets Act 1889 ( 52 & 53 Vict. c. 52). The act was introduced in response to public alarm at reports of wide- ...
, Special Branch raided Campbell's London home, those of his researchers
Jolyon Jenkins Jolyon Jenkins is a British investigative journalist and radio documentary producer known for his work with BBC Radio 4, BBC Television, and the ''New Statesman'' magazine. Over a career spanning several decades, he has researched, presented, ...
and Patrick Forbes, and the ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
''s offices. On 31 January 1987,
Strathclyde Police Strathclyde Police was the territorial police force responsible for the Scottish council areas of Argyll and Bute, Glasgow City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, ...
conducted a raid of
BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...
's premises in Glasgow which lasted for 28 hours. The Controller of BBC Scotland, Pat Chalmers was questioned by Special Branch police, and Protheroe was arrested and questioned by the Strathclyde police.


Screening to MPs and others

The matter now becoming public knowledge, opposition MP
Robin Cook Robert Finlayson "Robin" Cook (28 February 19466 August 2005) was a British Labour Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1974 until his death in 2005 and served in the Cabinet as Foreign Secretary from 1997 until ...
managed to obtain a video of the Zircon documentary and arranged a screening of it to MPs in the House of Commons. The
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
, Sir
Michael Havers Robert Michael Oldfield Havers, Baron Havers, (10 March 1923 – 1 April 1992), was a British barrister and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician. He was knighted in 1972 and appointed a life peer in 1987. Early life and military s ...
, sought an injunction in the High Court to prevent the video's screening, but the application was dismissed on the basis of
parliamentary privilege Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties ...
. Frustrated, the Attorney General organised a briefing on the matter for the
Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...
,
Bernard Weatherill Bruce Bernard Weatherill, Baron Weatherill, (25 November 1920 – 6 May 2007) was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as Speaker of the House of Commons between 1983 and 1992. Background Born in Sunningdale in 1920, he was the ...
, based on confidentiality stemming from their common membership of the Privy Council. That day, the
Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...
ruled that no part of the
Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...
was to be used for the screening of the video, pending a report by the
Committee of Privileges A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...
. With the help of sympathetic MPs Campbell tried to privately screen the programme in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
, though all BBC staff had been ordered to return copies of the programme. The Zircon project fell under the remit of the
Defence Select Committee The Defence Select Committee is one of the Select Committees of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, having been established in 1979. It examines the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Defence and its associated pu ...
, who wished to see the episode, but were opposed by a civil servant from the Ministry of Defence. The dispute was ruled upon by the Speaker, who ruled that the episode could not be shown on the parliamentary site, it was instead screened nearby. The governors remained in a state of disquiet, with Hussey complaining to Milne that the episode should never have been made. Hussey and the Board of Governors demanded Milne's resignation on 29 January. However, by this time, copies of the video had been obtained by various
civil liberties Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties of ...
organisations, which arranged public screenings around the UK. The government was now placed in a difficult situation. The Attorney General stayed his hand and the matter soon faded in the public interest. The Committee of Privileges subsequently recommended that screening the video would fall outside ''proceedings in parliament'' and was, therefore, not protected by privilege. They further recommended that the Speaker's actions had been wholly proper. In 1989 a ''New Statesman'' article by Campbell stated Zircon had been replaced by a US off-the-shelf satellite, under British control, launched by a US
Titan 34D The Titan 34D was a United States expendable launch vehicle used to launch a number of satellites for military applications. Service history Derived from the Titan III, the Titan 34D featured Stage 1 and Stage 2 stretched with more powerful ...
on 4 September 1989.


''Cabinet'' episode

The sixth episode of the ''Secret Society'' series was titled ''Cabinet'', and focused on secret
Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...
committees. It was also held back from broadcast, and has not, , ever been shown. The broadcast of the ''Cabinet'' episode was cancelled due to the imminent 1987 general election. The BBC subsequently rejected Campbell's attempt to buy the episode for broadcast on
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
in 1991, in a season of programming about censorship. Instead the episode was remade using Campbell's scripts. In a parliamentary debate on civil liberties and the Bill of Rights on 15 June 1989, Labour MP
Alistair Darling Alistair Maclean Darling, Baron Darling of Roulanish, (28 November 1953 – 30 November 2023) was a British politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer under prime minister Gordon Brown from 2007 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party ...
, then in opposition, claimed that the true reason for the Zircon affair was to distract from the ''Cabinet'' episode of ''Secret Society''. Darling said that "The Government's actions are oppressive, as has been shown by their treatment of broadcasting. We saw the spectacle of police being sent to raid the BBC headquarters in Glasgow in the middle of the night. ... We saw the Zircon tapes seized as an elaborate blind." Darling said that the cabinet episode concerned "the election campaign of 1983, and the fact that the Government sought to undermine and spy on the citizens of this country. Their object was to prevent the programme from being shown, and the Zircon affair was a blind."


See also

*
BBC controversies This article outlines, in chronological order, the various controversies surrounding or involving the BBC. Early years 1926 general strike In 1926, the General Council of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) called a General Strike to prevent wag ...


Footnotes


Bibliography

* * Bradley, A. W. (Spring 1987). "Parliamentary privilege and the Zircon affair". ''Public Law''. pp. 1–3. * Bradley, A. W. (Winter 1987). "Parliamentary privilege, Zircon and national security". ''Public Law''. pp. 488–495. * Milne, A. (1989). ''D. G.: Memoirs of a British Broadcaster''. {{ISBN, 0-340-49750-5. 1986 in British law 1987 in British law 1986 in the United Kingdom 1987 in the United Kingdom BBC controversies GCHQ Journalistic scandals Politics of the United Kingdom United Kingdom defence procurement