The world of journalism in Northern Ireland has been rocked by a revelation that MI5, the United Kingdom’s domestic security service, illegally monitored the communications of Vincent Kearney, a respected journalist who once served as the BBC’s Northern Ireland home affairs correspondent. The admission, described as “unprecedented” by Kearney himself, has sent shockwaves through the media community and ignited urgent calls for transparency, accountability, and the protection of press freedom.
According to documents submitted to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), MI5 conceded that it unlawfully obtained communications data from Kearney’s mobile phone on two separate occasions: once in 2006 and again in 2009. The security service’s confession was made public in a letter addressed to both the BBC and Kearney ahead of a tribunal hearing in London, as reported by BBC and other major outlets. This is believed to be the first time MI5 has publicly acknowledged such an intrusion into a journalist’s communications, setting a new and troubling precedent.
Kearney, now the northern editor of RTÉ News, expressed deep concern about the implications of MI5’s actions—not just for himself, but for all journalists. In his own words, he called the admission “unprecedented” and “deeply concerning,” highlighting the chilling effect such surveillance could have on the ability of journalists to protect their sources and report freely. “A journalist’s right to protect their sources is not a luxury, it is the bedrock of a free and fearless press,” echoed Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland director, in a statement to the press.
The BBC, which has supported Kearney’s legal inquiries, issued a grave response. “MI5’s admission that it illegally obtained communications data of a BBC journalist is a matter of grave concern. It raises serious and important questions that we will continue to pursue,” a spokesperson said. For the BBC and Kearney alike, the quest for answers is far from over. Their ongoing legal efforts aim to uncover the full extent of the unlawful surveillance, seeking to determine exactly what data was accessed, the rationale behind the actions, and whether MI5’s activities extended beyond the two admitted incidents.
The IPT hearing has also brought to light a broader and more troubling pattern of surveillance targeting investigative journalists in Northern Ireland. Kearney’s case is intertwined with that of Barry McCaffrey and Trevor Birney, two documentary filmmakers who were themselves subjected to unlawful covert intelligence operations by police. The tribunal is currently examining claims that multiple public bodies, including the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), and Durham Constabulary, spied on Kearney and other journalists.
Jude Bunting KC, representing Kearney and the BBC, told the tribunal: “The MI5 now confirms publicly that in 2006 and 2009 MI5 obtained communications data in relation to Vincent Kearney.” He further emphasized the gravity of the situation by stating, “This appears to be the first time in any tribunal proceedings in which MI5 publicly accept interference with a journalist’s communications data, and also publicly accept that they acted unlawfully in doing so.” Bunting characterized the security service’s actions as “serious and sustained illegality on the part of MI5.”
The admissions did not stop with MI5. The MPS conceded that it twice obtained Kearney’s communications data in 2012, stored it, and later provided some of it to Durham Constabulary in 2018. PSNI, for its part, acknowledged acting illegally in obtaining, storing, and using Kearney’s data, including authorizations related to the high-profile 2009 investigation into the murder of PC Stephen Carroll and Operation Erewhon in 2012. During Operation Erewhon, the MPS obtained material while investigating alleged leaks from the Office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (PONI). Durham Constabulary also admitted that its officers sought, obtained, reviewed, and used material from the MPS, acting on behalf of the PSNI.
The roots of this controversy stretch back to Kearney’s investigative work, particularly his 2011 Spotlight documentary about the independence of the Police Ombudsman’s Office. The legal actions stemmed from revelations that public bodies had spied on Kearney, as well as on McCaffrey and Birney, whose own ordeal began when they were arrested in 2018 over the alleged leaking of a confidential document featured in their film on a Troubles-era massacre, No Stone Unturned.
The police’s actions in the McCaffrey and Birney case were later found to be legally indefensible. In 2020, the High Court in Belfast ruled that warrants used to raid their homes and business offices had been wrongly obtained, and the IPT subsequently determined that the covert surveillance operation against the pair was unlawful. These findings, together with the recent admissions regarding Kearney, have cast a long shadow over the conduct of law enforcement and intelligence agencies in Northern Ireland.
For many observers, the implications go far beyond the individuals directly affected. “The disclosure that MI5 has twice trampled human rights law by unlawfully prying into the phone records of a journalist in Northern Ireland is profoundly alarming,” Corrigan of Amnesty International said. “The revelation that MI5 itself has been breaking the law to rifle through journalists’ communications should chill anyone who cares about freedom of the press in the UK. What is now urgently required is full transparency, genuine accountability and an end to this pattern of unlawful intrusion.”
Kearney’s case has also prompted broader questions about the relationship between the state and the press. As the northern editor of RTÉ News and a veteran of both the BBC and the Belfast Telegraph, Kearney’s work has often placed him at the heart of sensitive stories about policing and justice in Northern Ireland. The fact that he, and by extension his sources, were subjected to surveillance by multiple agencies underscores the vulnerability of journalists who challenge powerful institutions.
In the months and years ahead, the outcome of Kearney’s legal inquiries and the IPT’s ongoing investigations will be watched closely by journalists, civil liberties advocates, and the wider public. The stakes could hardly be higher; at issue is not only the right of journalists to do their jobs without fear of unlawful intrusion, but also the public’s right to know the truth about how power is exercised in a democratic society. The call for full accountability and safeguards for press freedom is echoing louder than ever across the United Kingdom.
As these investigations continue, the revelations about MI5’s actions have already left a lasting mark on the landscape of British journalism, serving as a stark reminder that the fight for press freedom and government accountability is never truly over.
