Boris Johnson’s taxpayer-funded office has been hit by a large data leak, prompting security questions. The former prime minister, who receives public cash to fund his activities following his departure from Downing Street, has been left embarrassed after The Guardian newspaper got its hands on thousands of files.
More than 1,800 internal files, including emails, letters, invoices, spreadsheets, speeches, and contracts from Mr Johnson’s office, were obtained by a US-registered whistleblowing company named Distributed Denial of Secrets (DDoS). DDoS gave the newspaper oversight of the documents, which has prompted a number of eyebrow-raising claims about the former PM’s activities.
The whistleblowers said they did not know where the files came from, but that they obtained them earlier this year.
The documents have not been made public by DDoS and cannot be viewed by the public, unlike rivals Wikileaks, but The Guardian was given access to them.
The leak, which includes sensitive material, prompts questions about the security of Mr Johnson’s operation.
Mr Johnson is entitled to about £115,000 a year from the taxpayer in order to fund his operation, which is used to pay staff and cover other expenses arising from his activities as a former prime minister.
The system was set up by John Major’s government to help Margaret Thatcher, who was in enormous demand but was having to live off the then-minuscule salary given to backbench MPs.
All former prime ministers have such an office, though there is minimal transparency around their activities.
Former PMs such as Sir Tony Blair and Lord Cameron have been subjected to enormous storms around their private business interests since leaving office.
Mr Johnson has not yet issued a comment on the leak.