The son of the murdered private detective Daniel Morgan has said the home secretary is adding to his family’s grief by blocking the publication of a report about the killing.
Morgan’s son, also called Daniel, said Patel should “bring the torture to an end” by allowing the findings to be published – The Guardian has reported.
The inquiry panel established in 2013 for this case was meant to publish a report on 24 May about the role of police and media corruption into Morgan’s killing.
But on 18 May, the Home Office said the report is not going to be published until Patel had reviewed it and made any changes she deemed necessary.
A Home Office spokesperson said Patel wanted to ensure the report complied with “national security considerations”.
Patel told Channel 4 News: “I think it’s important that I, as home secretary, actually receive the report before it is published.”
“I have yet to receive this report and I think it’s right that I receive the report and read it before laying it in parliament.
“That is standard practice when it comes to reports of this nature and that is absolutely the right process to follow.”
What does the family say?
The victim’s son, Daniel, wrote in The Guardian: “I urge the home secretary to stand aside. You say you want to review the report over concerns relating to the Human Rights Act and national security. You know you have made no preparations for any such review, because none was ever envisaged on your part.
“You have said you understand how we feel and you don’t wish to compromise the integrity or the independence of the panel and their work. If this is true, we see no reason for you not to desist immediately, so that the panel’s report may be published as it stands without any further delay.”
Alastair Morgan, the murdered man’s brother, said Patel “would have received the report one day before publication, as is the convention, but she blocked publication and insisted she was entitled to redact if she saw fit”.
He added: “This was not part of the deal.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “Under the panel’s terms of reference agreed in 2013, it is for the home secretary to make arrangements for the report’s publication to parliament.
“Until the panel provide the home secretary with the report, she is unable to make those arrangements or meet her responsibilities to ensure it complies with human rights and national security considerations, should these arise.
“We hope the panel will reconsider and provide the Home Office with the report so those checks can begin swiftly and we can publish soon.”
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