24 July 2026

SDLP Policing Board member Colin McGrath MLA has welcomed a ruling of damages for a journalist subjected to surveillance by MI5 and the PSNI.

The Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) ordered that journalist Vincent Kearney be paid £20,000 after his phone records were illegally obtained.

South Down MLA Colin McGrath said:

“This ruling by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal makes for deeply troubling reading. The extent of the unlawful surveillance carried out against journalist Vincent Kearney is shocking. The fact that a profile was also created on him with information about his family makes the findings even more disturbing.

“The explanation put forward by MI5 and the PSNI that this was simply a consequence of the legislation at the time is difficult to accept. People will rightly question how conduct of this nature could ever have been considered acceptable.

“Serious questions now have to be answered. I will be raising these with the Chief Constable through the Policing Board and will again be calling for a review of the relationship between the PSNI and MI5. Findings as serious as these cannot simply be acknowledged and then forgotten.

“An equally important question is who else was subjected to this type of surveillance. It is hard to believe this began and ended with Vincent Kearney. The public deserves to know the full extent of what happened.

“The SDLP supports the National Union of Journalists’ call for a judge-led public inquiry into the unlawful surveillance of journalists, lawyers and others. When these findings are viewed alongside the “X” case, MI5’s conduct before the courts, and the treatment of Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey, a clear pattern of deeply concerning behaviour emerges. Taken together, these cases demand a full, independent inquiry to establish exactly what happened, who was affected, and what changes are needed to ensure it cannot happen again.”