Blacklisting inquiry admission

In closing statements to the first tranche of the Mitting Inquiry into undercover policing, counsel to the inquiry accepted for the first time that information on individuals who were spied on was frequently passed to employers, and that “spy cops” infiltrated unions and spied on their members.

“Finally it has been admitted what our members have always said,” said Unite general secretary Sharon Graham.

She said “no stone must be left unturned in discovering the true scale of blacklisting by the spy cops and reveal who in authority gave the green light for this”.

She also called for complete exposure of the infiltration of trade unions, including answers as to why it happened and who considered it acceptable.

The Blacklist Support Group called the counsel statement “a massive admission by the state, brought about by our collective struggle”.