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Sadiq Khan said he was carrying out his normal MP work



The US is trying to extradite Babar Ahmad

"I thought the only proper thing to do was to notify the prime minister in confidence, which is what I did" - David Davis

"The prime minister knows nothing about this letter" - Downing Street spokeswoman

Last Updated: Sunday, 3 February 2008, 20:54 GMT

Brown 'unaware of bugging letter'

Downing Street says it has no evidence that the PM received a letter from the Conservative Party warning that an MP's conversations may have been bugged.

Newspapers have alleged that Labour MP Sadiq Khan's discussions with his constituent Babar Ahmad in prison were monitored by anti-terrorist officers.

Shadow home secretary David Davis says he wrote to the PM in December, but No 10 says it has no record of the letter.

A government inquiry is now under way into the prison bugging claims.

Mr Ahmad faces no charges in the UK but is awaiting a decision from the European courts to discover if he will be extradited to the US, on suspicion of running websites raising funds for the Taleban.

Police are entitled to monitor prisoners' communications, but such operations must first be approved by the surveillance commissioner who considers them on a case-by-case basis.

Inquiry announced

The Sunday Times claimed Mr Khan's visits to Mr Ahmad in jail in Milton Keynes in 2005 and 2006, were bugged by Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist branch. Scotland Yard has refused to comment on the allegation.

The bugging of MPs has been barred since eavesdropping scandals during Harold Wilson's government.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw said he had no knowledge of the facts surrounding the Khan case but added: "It is completely unacceptable for an interview to be conducted by a MP, on a constituent matter or in any other issue, to be recorded."

The Commons home affairs committee is also investigating the claims as part of its wider inquiry into whether the UK is becoming a "surveillance society".

The Conservatives have published a letter which they say Mr Davis sent to Gordon Brown on 11 December. It asks him whether the Wilson Doctrine - established in 1966 which states that MPs will not be bugged - is still in place.

'Detailed check'

The letter reads: "I have reason to believe that the policy has been breached in relations to communications between a constituent, arrested and detained as a terrorist suspect since 2003, and his member of Parliament.

"I would be grateful if you could review this serious matter and inform me of the outcome of your review."

A spokeswoman for Downing Street said a number of letters from Mr Davis had been received since December on various issues.

She added: "But having conducted a detailed check, we have no record of receiving a letter about the bugging of MPs.

"Consequently the prime minister knows nothing about this letter."

Relationship 'undermined'

Mr Davis told the BBC he would be calling for a Commons statement on the issue on Monday and said it needed to be established who had made the decision.

Mr Davis said he had heard about the bugging allegations from "a source" but added: "It was somebody who was concerned that the Wilson doctrine was being broken and I thought the only proper thing to do was to notify the prime minister in confidence, which is what I did.

"I have to say I'm rather surprised that nothing has happened in the interim and indeed that the Justice Secretary, Jack Straw, is claiming that this is some sort of surprise."

Earlier Mr Khan, a government whip and Labour MP for Tooting, told the BBC he welcomed Mr Straw's announcement that there would be an inquiry, and said he did not know if the allegations that his visits were bugged were true.

But he added: "If it was the case...that constituents were having their conversations with members of Parliament bugged, then it clearly means the whole relationship and the basis on which that relationship has been based for decades and, dare I say centuries, is undermined."

In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said: "We do not discuss matters of national security but recognise they are subject to proper scrutiny."

It said it would "encourage the use" of the independent Investigatory Powers Tribunal to investigate any complaints - and would "always would fully co-operate with the tribunal's work".

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Last Updated: Sunday, 3 February 2008, 16:38 GMT

Text of David Davis letter to PM

Downing Street has denied Conservative claims that Gordon Brown was warned weeks ago that Labour MP Sadiq Khan was allegedly bugged during a visit to a constituent in jail.

Shadow home secretary David Davis has released the full text of a letter he said he sent, dated 11 December, 2007, to the prime minister.

Dear Prime Minister,

You will recall the Wilson Doctrine, first articulated by Harold Wilson in 1966, under which it was set out as a matter of public policy that Government would not tap the telephones of Members of Parliament.

Your immediate predecessor and other Ministers have, since 1997, consistently confirmed that this policy remains in place.

I have reason to believe that the policy has been breached in relation to communications between a constituent, arrested and detained as a terrorist suspect since 2003, and his Member of Parliament.

I would be grateful if you could review this serious matter and inform me of the outcome of your review.

In addition, I would be grateful if you could confirm that there has been no change in the Wilson Doctrine under your premiership, in light of your clear commitment, made on July 3 of this year, to 'restore power to Parliament in order to build the trust of British people in our democracy'.

I am writing on a confidential basis, in the first instance, given the nature of the subject, the related sensitivities and to afford you an opportunity to provide a briefing on Privy Council terms if you deem it appropriate on grounds of national security.

I look forward to hearing from you.

David Davis

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Mr Khan was a prominent human rights lawyer



Mr Khan was among Muslim MPs who raised concerns with Tony Blair

"Constituents should feel comfortable about their ability to go and see their member of Parliament and speak with honesty and candour about their issues" - Sadiq Khan

Last Updated: Sunday, 3 February 2008, 16:53 GMT

Profile: Sadiq Khan

Sadiq Khan has been an MP for less than three years, but has quickly made a name for himself as a rising star in the Labour Party.

He made his name as a human rights lawyer before becoming one of the first Muslim ministers - and has dedicated much time to improving relations between the police and Muslim communities across the country.

The 37-year-old was voted "newcomer of the year" in the 2005 Spectator magazine awards, within months of being elected to the south London seat of Tooting.

He might be a government whip now, in charge of making sure Labour MPs vote in line with the government, but he has not been afraid of ruffling a few feathers, particularly on issues concerning community cohesion.

In the weeks that followed the 2005 bomb attacks on London's underground network, Mr Khan was warning of widespread concern about some of the anti-terrorism measures planned by ministers.

Open letter

He also raised concerns about Britain's policy towards the Middle East, during air attacks by Israel against Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group.

And he was one of three Muslim MPs to sign an open letter to then prime minister Tony Blair in August 2006 suggesting British foreign policy was putting civilian lives at risk in the UK and abroad - a move that was criticised by the then home secretary as "misjudged".

Born in Tooting in 1970, Mr Khan grew up on Earlsfield's Henry Prince Estate and went to local primary schools and comprehensive before going on to study law and trained as a human rights solicitor.

He co-founded his firm Christian-Khan with fellow human rights lawyer Louise Christian, was chairman of Liberty, the civil liberties group, for three years, as well as being a chairman of the Muslim Council of Britain's legal affairs committee.

Now a government whip, he has voted to support the government on controversial issues such as the introduction of identity cards and in favour of its anti-terrorism laws in Parliament.

Mr Khan has been campaigning against the laws under which the US wants to extradite his constituent Babar Ahmad. Mr Ahmad is accused of running websites raising money for the Taleban but faces no charges in the UK.

NatWest Three

UK laws introduced in 2003, the year Mr Ahmad was arrested, allow US prosecutors to request extradition without having to prove in UK courts there is a case to answer.

Critics say it makes it far easier for the US to extradite a suspect from Britain than the other way around - the same laws were used to extradite the NatWest Three following the collapse of Enron.

It is reported that Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist branch bugged conversations between Mr Khan and computer expert Mr Ahmad during visits to Woodhill Prison in Milton Keynes in 2005 and 2006.

Mr Khan told the BBC he didn't know anything about it until his wife Saadiya saw the story on the news and said it was important to await the outcome of an inquiry into the claims.

But he said, if it was true, it could have serious implications for the relationship between MPs and their constituents - some of whom may be suffering domestic violence, serious neighbourhood disputes or disputes with the police.

"Constituents should feel comfortable about their ability to go and see their member of Parliament and speak with honesty and candour about their issues," he said.

"If it was the case...that constituents were having their conversations with members of Parliament bugged, then it clearly means the whole relationship and the basis on which that relationship has been based for decades and, dare I say centuries, is undermined."

Mr Khan, who was a Tooting councillor before becoming an MP, has been married since 1994 and has two daughters.

He was parliamentary private secretary to then Commons leader Jack Straw, before taking up a ministerial role in the government whip's office, with responsibilities for managing Ministry of Justice legislation.

He plays for the UK Parliament Football Club as well as the Lords and Commons cricket clubs and has links with the Labour-affiliated Fabian Society, Progress, as well as being a member of the GMB and Unison trade unions.