Paisley to raise '˜disgraceful' phone-tapping of late father in parliament

Former deputy prime minister Lord Prescott revealed the firebrand Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician had his calls tapped despite a long-standing convention that MPs should not have their communications monitored

The former DUP leader’s son, also called Ian Paisley, pledged to raise the issue in Parliament when the Commons returns after Easter.

Lord Prescott said then-prime minister Tony Blair told him in 2005 that security services had eavesdropped on an MP.

He said that after pressing Mr Blair for a name, the then-premier told him it was the DUP leader, who later became Northern Ireland’s first minister and a peer before his death in 2014.

Writing in his Sunday Mirror column, Lord Prescott said the surveillance watchdog had wanted to name Mr Paisley but Parliament was not informed.

Lord Prescott said: “Downing Street had been told by the Interception of Communications Commissioner, who wanted to name Paisley.

“Tony asked me to discuss the Wilson doctrine with the Speaker of the House of Commons. I never told him that an MP had been tapped or that it was Paisley.

“Parliament was not informed and Paisley went on to become First Minister of Northern Ireland.

“I can only think that as the peace process was still a concern, mentioning the fact a leading loyalist politician had been tapped by Britain’s security services in the past would not have helped.”

The convention that MPs’ communications should not be intercepted by police or security services is known as the Wilson doctrine after former prime minister Harold Wilson, who announced the policy in 1966.

In March 2006, Mr Blair assured Parliament the Wilson doctrine would be maintained despite advice to scrap the policy.

Mr Paisley said the revelation amounted to an “utterly disgraceful breach of the Wilson doctrine sanctioned by a government that would do anything for its own end”.

He added: “This will be raised in parliament on 18 April. Did Prescott oppose Blair on this? All MPs’ freedoms undermined by the action of Blair.”

The Sunday Mirror said Lord Prescott does not know when Mr Paisley’s phone was tapped or whether MI5, MI6, police or the Army were responsible.

He approached then-Commons speaker Michael Martin to discuss how the Wilson doctrine was applied but did not mention it was prompted by what he had learned about Mr Paisley.