Speeches by Morello.

“I am just trying to work out the timeline in terms of what information the Prime Minister had when he made the decision to fire Sir Oliver, and what information was provided to the Prime Minister subsequent to that. I am especially thinking about the email with the mitigations in it or the advice of the security offici…”

“When you briefed the Prime Minister on the limited amount of information you were able to share with the UKSV—I don’t know if you briefed or provided, so please clarify, the risk mitigations that were outlined in the email—did you also provide information to the Prime Minister in any form about what the advice of the h…”

“So in terms of the Prime Minister’s decision to fire Sir Oliver, he was not in receipt at that point of all of the information—only the limited information that you provided relating to the UKSV.”

“Subsequent to you gaining access to the UKSV, was there a conversation with Sir Olly about the advice that he received and the decision that he made?”

“Understood.”

“I just want to clarify: you obviously had a conversation with Sir Oliver about accessing the information, but prior to that had there been a conversation with Sir Olly about the advice that he received, and did his answers to your questions around that match the evidence that he gave to the Committee on Tuesday?”

“Subsequent to your receiving access to the UKSV report, did you have a conversation with Ian Collard, who was the head of security at the time, to establish what advice or information had been shared with Sir Oliver?”

“Sorry—I probably should have formed the question better in my head before I put my hand up.”

“But the Prime Minister had been briefed by you on the UKSV.”

“And had he seen the email of the mitigations that were being put in place?”

“Did the information that was provided by Ian Collard differ from the evidence that Sir Oliver gave to the Committee on Tuesday?”

“Will the right hon. Member give way?”

“Before the right hon. Member leaves his first point, which I absolutely agree with, I want to pay tribute to the 6th Battalion the Rifles in Dorchester, the only infantry reserve in the south-west. Their proud track record includes service in Mali, Cyprus and elsewhere with British forces. The issue of growing numbers …”

“Okay. You have already outlined the extreme levels of political pressure that you were under to complete this process. Is there any suggestion that that pressure filtered down to the Department that ultimately was making the recommendations to you? Were you satisfied in that meeting that the options that were proposed …”

“This morning, Sir Olly Robbins appeared before the Foreign Affairs Committee. What I saw was a dedicated public servant who, over 25 years, has held some of the most senior roles in the civil service. The Prime Minister would like us to believe that he was let down by officials such as Sir Olly, but in truth it was the…”

“I totally accept that, but I just want to be clear that the advice you were given in that meeting—that conversation—was, “We understand these risks, we believe we can mitigate against them, and therefore you should be comfortable making the decision to grant it,” or, “It’s our decision that it can be granted given that…”

“I totally accept that, but I just want to be clear that the advice you were given in that meeting—that conversation—was, “We understand these risks, we believe we can mitigate against them, and therefore you should be comfortable making the decision to grant it,” or, “It’s our decision that it can be granted given that…”

“I want to clarify the conversation that happened in the meeting. Presumably, your chief of security comes to you and explains the concerns raised, but also the mitigation that he believes the Department can put in place. At that point, is it a recommendation to you or is it your judgment on whether or not those mitigat…”

“I accept that.”

“I want to link up the questions that Uma has been asking you and something you said earlier, which was that, in relation to Matthew Doyle, you had been ordered by No. 10 not to tell the Foreign Secretary. Then, when you went to the Cabinet Office to seek permission to look at the UKSV report, you were told, “No, you ca…”