http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23438618-details/Diplomatic+crisis+looms+as+French+bugs+'discovered+in+UK+Defence+Minister's+office'/article.do thisislondon.co.uk 17.02.08 A leading MP is to challenge the Government over claims that a Defence Minister was bugged by the French when he was responsible for the award of billions of pounds worth of contracts. Tory MP Patrick Mercer says senior security sources have told him that bugs were placed in the offices of Lord Drayson, the then-Defence Procurement Minister, at the House of Lords and in the Ministry of Defence, so the French could eavesdrop on conversations about valuable projects. The claim has the potential to cause a major diplomatic row between Britain and France, which regularly compete for huge defence equipment contracts all over the world. The French bugging episode is said to have taken place two years ago when major Labour Party donor Lord Drayson was involved in the 20billion deal to build two giant new supercarriers for the Royal Navy and a project worth up to 60billion for 3,000 British Army fighting vehicles. Senior Government and Whitehall sources insisted last night they had "no knowledge" of the bugging. However, a former senior Whitehall official, who has since left Government service, has revealed he was told by a senior member of the intelligence community that the French eavesdropping on Lord Drayson took place. According to intelligence sources, Lord Drayson's office in the Lords was subjected to a routine security sweep and a listening device was found which had the "fingerprint" of the type used by the French. The former senior Whitehall official confirmed that a second bugging device was discovered during a similar sweep during the same period at Lord Drayson's MoD office. Lord Drayson who, with his family, is worth an estimated 80million and controversially quit his Ministerial post last November to pursue his dream of competing in the Le Mans 24-hour race was yesterday on holiday in Europe. He refused to comment on the allegations. This was despite his UK office passing on details of the bugging claims to him by mobile phone, text and email on behalf of this newspaper. After The Mail on Sunday tried for several days to obtain a comment, Lord Drayson's office said: "Lord Drayson decided when he left Ministerial office never to discuss his role in Government, and he never will." The French have long been suspected of carrying out spying missions in the UK. Mr Mercer, the former Shadow Homeland Security Minister, said: "It's disgraceful to think that a so-called ally of this country should spy upon us. "I have been told by well placed sources that Lord Drayson was spied upon by the French and that bugs were placed in his offices at the House of Lords and in the MoD. "I shall raise this matter in the House of Commons on Monday by putting down an urgent question. "I am appalled to think that we should have laid ourselves open to this sort of insidious treachery. "No wonder that relationships between Britain and France are always so strained." Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said last night: "This report suggests a shocking breach of national security. "If true, it raises serious questions about the integrity of communications from both Government and Parliament. "We need some urgent answers. "Why did the precautionary measures that should prevent such breaches fail? "What security measures are now being taken? "And what representations have been made to the French about these very serious allegations?" Mr Davis added: "This is not the first security breach at Parliament. "Just one month ago, an illegal immigrant was found working in the House of Commons. "When will this Government get a grip on security?" Father-of-five Lord Drayson is no stranger to controversy. He sold his biotech group Powder-Ject for 542million in 2003, a year after it was controversially awarded a 32million Government smallpox vaccine contract which caused its value to rise sharply. Shortly before that, Lord Drayson had donated 50,000 to the Labour Party, but a parliamentary inquiry cleared him of any improper activity. And after being made a working peer in 2004, Lord Drayson gave Labour another 500,000, resulting in claims that his peerage had been "bought". A year later, the tycoon admitted that, until the previous winter, he had kept his fortune in an offshore trust in the Isle of Man, a popular destination to avoid UK taxes. The trusts were wound up after he entered public life. Lord and Lady Drayson live between homes in London, Nether Lypiatt Manor near Stroud, Gloucestershire bought for almost 6million in 2006 from Prince and Princess Michael of Kent and a palatial 7million mansion at Tourettes sur Loup in the South of France. Lord Drayson, who describes himself as a "car nut", drives an Aston Martin Vanquish, his wife has an Aston Martin DB9 and his collection includes a Lotus Elan. The biotech multi-millionaire drives a six-litre ethanol-powered, 200mph Aston Martin DBRS9 GT3-spec race car for Barwell Motorsport, a company he helped found to realise his dream of competing in the Le Mans 24-hour race. He plans to compete in the US Le Mans series this year, in the hope of qualifying for the fully-fledged French classic, even though he has good sight in just one eye. If the French bugging suspicion is substantiated, it would not be the first time their security services have been caught out in London. Three years ago, The Mail on Sunday revealed how French secret agent Pierre Martinet, who had retired from the French DGSE foreign intelligence service, came to London in 1998 to spy on a suspected member of the Algerian Armed Islamic Group, the GIA, which had links to Al-Qaeda. The DGSE, unlike Britain's MI6, is a military organisation with a reputation for ruthlessness in 1985 it blew up the Greenpeace protest ship Rainbow Warrior in New Zealand, which had been set to embarrass France over nuclear tests, killing a crew member. ___________________________________________________ Subscribe to InfoSec News http://www.infosecnews.org/mailman/listinfo/isn
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