13 July 2008

Andrew Mackinlay MP is targeted for MI5 smear campaign

A politically motivated attack is currently being orchestrated by MI5 against Andrew Mackinlay, the British Member of Parliament. The attack is taking the form of a smear campaign, alleging that something suspicious is involved in Mr Mackinlay’s meetings with Russian diplomats, with the claim that he has met possible Russian spies. Incredibly, it appears that MI5 have been spying on Mr Mackinlay while he was actually within the Houses of Parliament. Mr Mackinlay’s defence is that he is just going about his normal business as a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee.

As usual, the Mail on Sunday is the main newspaper being used by MI5 to undermine Mr Mackinlay's position, and the tactics look all too obvious. The recent article that started these serious attacks on Mr Mackinlay is this one.

The plot involved planting information in an obscure Bulgarian newspaper named Standart, and it was a fairly crude but planned operation. The development of the story indicates that certain journalists at the Mail on Sunday are under the control of MI5, and that Glen Owen in particular is one of their agents.

Then, this weekend, Glen Owen has turned up the heat by writing another article to further damage Mr Mackinlay.

But what purpose could lie behind these savage attacks on an elected Member of Parliament? The reason becomes clear when we look at the role Mr Mackinlay has played in Parliament: he does not readily accept the dishonest answers given by the Prime Minister or other Cabinet Ministers, and instead he has asked many awkward questions to uncover the truth. It is said that Mr Mackinlay has been a thorn in the side of the government, and in standing up for democracy he is one of the few MPs prepared to challenge what is wrong in British politics.

Of all the MPs in parliament, Mr Mackinlay is one the few who steadfastly stands up for truth and honesty in politics, and that is why he is so dangerous to those who wish to undermine the system, and MI5 is an organisation that is attempting to attack our freedoms and to extend the surveillance society.

People like Andrew Mackinlay need our support, and I cannot say this better than the whistleblower and champion of human rights Craig Murray.

The background to this case is very worrying because it is an example of the strategy of the British intelligence services to isolate and demonise Russia, which in turn is part of the UK’s broader alliance with the misguided foreign policies being pursued by the USA.