Questions remain as to how many knew former director of communications had not undergone developed vetting
Downing Street is refusing to say whether Andy Coulson attended any meetings as David Cameron's head of communications in which he had access to sensitive information on counter-terrorism, Afghanistan and foreign affairs that would have been in breach of his relatively limited security clearance.
The Guardian on Tuesday night sent Downing Street a list of 14 questions about the vetting process for Coulson and asked about meetings the former News of the World editor may have attended with the prime minister.
The prime minister's office was asked if Coulson saw documents or attended briefings about the printer bomb terrorism scare at East Midlands airport in October 2010 for which he did not have appropriate security clearance; if White House or US state department officials were informed he had not completed "developed vetting" when he accompanied Cameron on his visit to Washington in July 2010; and if he ever attended a meeting relating to Afghanistan, UK military matters or counter-terrorism at which intelligence was discussed.
Downing Street had admitted he had not undergone the rigorous security vetting process that was applied to both his successor and several of his predecessors.
Coulson, who has been arrested and bailed by police investigating phone hacking and illegal payments to the police, did not undergo developed vetting which involves rigorous cross-examination and background checks by trained investigators to uncover anything in a person's background that could make them vulnerable to blackmail. Once cleared, it allows unsupervised access to top-secret material and previous senior Downing Street media officials, including Alastair Campbell, have claimed it would be very difficult to do the job properly without it.
"These queries seem to misunderstand the nature of vetting," a spokesman said. "Andy Coulson was security clearance [a lower level of vetting] cleared, which allowed him access to secret papers.
"Developed vetting is not an employability test, it is about access to papers. It is required for those who need frequent access to the highest classification of material. This is a small minority and is not a standard vetting even for special advisers and senior officials in Downing Street.
"In Andy Coulson's case, there is no suggestion he was sent papers incorrectly. Nor, as the PM has said, have there been complaints or assertions that he broke the rules in his employment at Downing Street."
He added that it was decided that Coulson should undergo DV after the East Midlands airport scare owing to the "importance of communications in handling specific terrorist incidents".
Downing Street also refused to say which ministers or officials were informed of the decision not to subject Coulson to the DV process when he started working in government in May 2010. It declined to comment on the level of screening applied to Coulson when he started working for the Conservative party which is thought to have been carried out by Control Risks Screening, which offered standard checks for �150.40.
"I don't intend to go into further detailed questions," the spokesman said. "To repeat, vetting is about access to paperwork, not meetings and I think the explanation above, the Cabinet Secretary's letters and assurances set out the facts well."
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jul/27/coulson-security-clearance-not-disclosed
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