Final ultimatum for Mercer after his request to withhold special forces names from inquiry denied
Johnny Mercer is potentially facing prison after his application to withhold the names of those who told him about alleged special forces murders was rejected by the chairman of the Afghanistan Inquiry.
The former veterans' minister, who lost his seat in the general election to Labour's former Royal Marine Fred Thomas, has been given two more weeks to give the information to the inquiry.
He has repeatedly refused to hand over the names of "multiple officers" who told him about allegations of murder and a cover-up.
They told him of the allegation during his time as a backbench MP while he was giving evidence to the inquiry in February.
Inquiry chairman Sir Charles Haddon-Cave quoted from the British Army's values and standards when giving his verdict, saying: "Integrity requires moral courage to do what is right, even when it may not be popular."
Sir Charles also said Mr Mercer "submits that he is a protector of whistleblowers".
"He chose publicly, however, to disclose that friends told him about allegations of unlawful killings by [special forces] in Afghanistan," he said.
"He has since refused to disclose the names to assist the inquiry, even though: the inquiry was set up for the very purpose of looking into these allegations; he says that that his friends were merely witnesses; he could pass on their names to the inquiry privately and in strict confidence; he accepts that the inquiry protects the identities of confidential contacts; and they have protection from risk of prosecution for breach of the Official Secrets Act or failure to report misconduct."
In response to Sir Charles' verdict, Mr Mercer, in a post on X, said he found it "extraordinary – given [his] unprecedented support to assist the inquiry" that the chairman finds it appropriate to "repeatedly question [his] moral courage and integrity in public".
"These unjustified and unprovoked attempts by a High Court Judge to assassinate my character – without any foundation whatsoever – crosses a line," Mr Mercer's post read.
"From Northern Ireland to Iraq to Afghanistan," he said, "the courts have consistently misjudged their handling of these issues."
Mr Mercer said he could "comment on the naiveté of the inquiry team; or how – despite [his] repeated requests for them to have the basic courtesy to inform [him] privately before they release details of [his] fate to the press.
"I again found out my fate today from a journalist," Mr Mercer said. "But I would consider that improper.
"I have given my statement to the inquiry. Mr Haddon-Cave must now stop fixating on attempting to bully me – I have done nothing wrong.
"I gave my word to junior personnel who approached me.
"I intend to keep it."
Mr Mercer, when giving his reason for not disclosing the names during his evidence in February, told counsel to the inquiry Oliver Glasgow KC: "The one thing you can hold on to is your integrity – and I will be doing that with these individuals."
The inquiry chairman had previously ordered Mr Mercer to hand over the names.
In doing so, he said the consequences of failing to comply without reasonable excuse would be a "criminal offence punishable with imprisonment and/or a fine".
As a result, Mr Mercer submitted an application to the probe on 3 April, arguing he was either unable, or it was not reasonable for him, to comply with the order.
He later accused the inquiry of "ignoring pretty serious evidence" in order to "fixate" on pressuring him to hand over the names.
A spokeswoman for the inquiry said Mr Mercer was "refusing to disclose information which may be important to a public inquiry which is seeking to establish the truth about grave allegations of multiple murder involving UK Special Forces".
"Mr Mercer accepts the inquiry has secure measures in place to protect the names and identities of his sources and that witnesses coming forward to the inquiry have protection from risk of prosecution for breaches of the Official Secrets Act or for failure to report misconduct," she said.
"The chair has given Mr Mercer a further two weeks to comply with the Section 21 notice.
"The chair's concluding observations were that 'Integrity requires moral courage to do what is right, even when it may not be popular'."
Mr Mercer now has until 25 July to hand over the names to the inquiry.
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