UK Defense Secretary to Investigate 77th Brigade’s Surveillance of COVID Lockdown Critics

UK Defense Secretary to Investigate 77th Brigade’s Surveillance of COVID Lockdown Critics
UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace arrives to attend the government weekly cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, on March 8, 2022. Leon Neal/Getty Images
Owen Evans
Updated:

Claims that the British army’s information warfare unit, the 77th brigade, monitored lockdown critics on social media platforms are being investigated, according to UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.

On Jan. 30, in light of a new report from the civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, the UK government admitted that it monitored lockdown critics on social media platforms via its disinformation units during COVID but denied that it targeted individuals.
For its “Ministry of Truth” report (pdf), Big Brother Watch submitted numerous freedom of information requests and cooperated with UK citizens who submitted requests to demand copies of their data held by government disinformation units.

The report found that the monitoring and reporting of critics were done under the government’s Counter Disinformation Unit in the Culture Department.

Big Brother Watch also disclosed a whistleblower testimony, which they claim confirmed the 77th Brigade collected posts on Twitter from UK citizens posting about COVID-19 and passed them to the government. The Epoch Times hasn’t been able to verify these claims or the identity of the whistleblower.

Former Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis during a press conference in London on Jan. 15, 2019. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)
Former Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis during a press conference in London on Jan. 15, 2019. Leon Neal/Getty Images

David Davis Monitored

Speaking in the Commons on Jan. 30, former Conservative Cabinet minister David Davis—who was monitored, according to Big Brother Watch—called for the issue to be reviewed, with Wallace issuing an assurance that he had already instructed for it to be looked into.

“I know him well enough that when he tells us that he gave clear instructions and guidelines to the Brigade to only operate foreign powers and extremists, he was telling the exact truth,” Davis said.

“Will he however review the issue and ensure that his guidelines have been followed in all cases?”

Wallace replied that the brigade is “not to be involved in regulating, policing, or even reporting opinion that it may or may not agree with.”

“Colleagues may have read reports this weekend about activity conducted by the Army’s counter-disinformation unit in 77th Brigade,” he said.

“Online disinformation from foreign state actors is a serious threat to the United Kingdom, which is why during the pandemic we brought together expertise from ... across Government to monitor disinformation about COVID.

“77th Brigade is a hybrid unit of regular and reserve personnel that was established in 2015. It delivers information activities as part of broader military effects against hostile state actors and violent extremist organisations based outside the UK.

“It uses publicly available data, including material shared on social media platforms, to assess UK disinformation trends.”

The 77th

Big Brother Watch claimed that the British army’s 77th, which has conducted operations against both the Taliban and al-Qaeda, collated posts on Twitter from British citizens about COVID-19 at the start of the pandemic, passing them to the Cabinet Office, though it’s understood that this ended by late 2021.

During COVID-19, the government used different units including the Rapid Response Unit, the Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU), and the Government Information Cell. Each had roles in “tackling harmful narratives online,” monitoring and flagging “disinformation” content to social media companies, and pushing official lines, the report stated.

The report found that the monitoring and reporting of critics were done under the government’s Counter Disinformation Unit in the Culture Department.

In the report, figures who warranted attention from the CDU included Lockdown Sceptics founder Toby Young, talkRADIO’s Julia Hartley-Brewer, and Mail on Sunday columnist Peter Hitchens.

‘Something Is Rotten’

The report noted that author Laura Dodsworth found herself in a “Cross Whitehall Weekly Counter Disinformation Report” from June 2021 mentioning the launch of her book “A State of Fear: How the UK Government Weaponized Fear During the COVID-19 Pandemic.”

Dodsworth told The Epoch Times by email that she believed that the report “vindicated some of the anonymous sources and findings published in her book.”

“Something is rotten in a state when the surveillance apparatus is turned upon the innocent civilian,” she wrote.

“In a free and democratic country, propaganda and surveillance might be turned on enemy states and terrorists, but not on the population. The justification might be the ‘war footing’ the government placed us on for a virus.”

A government spokesman said that it “did not target individuals or take any action that could impact anyone’s ability to discuss and debate issues freely.”

PA media contributed to this report.
Owen Evans
Owen Evans
Author
Owen Evans is a UK-based journalist covering a wide range of national stories, with a particular interest in civil liberties and free speech.
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