This form of communication has been treated ‘like any other intelligence’, according to revelations made in a case about the rendition of two Libyans and their torture. Lawyers for the two managed to force release of documents, including the policy of MI5, which had never been made public before. The documents show that intelligence staff were allowed to ‘in principle target the communications of lawyers'. 

Eavesdropping for years

Cori Crider, a director at the legal charity Reprieve, said: ‘It’s now clear the intelligence agencies have been eavesdropping on lawyer-client conversations for years. The question now is not whether, but how much they have rigged the game in their favour in the ongoing court case over torture.’ The documents from the government bodies go back to the situation prevailing since at least 2011. Source: The Independent