The MoD cannot reconcile the total cost of a secret relocation plan created after an Afghan data leak. The MoD estimates the immediate cost associated with the breach and the new relocation scheme at 850m, but the National Audit Office (NAO) says the MoD has not provided enough evidence to support that figure and notes it excludes legal expenses and likely compensation claims. A 2022 spreadsheet leak exposed details of almost 19,000 applicants, including names, contact and family information, and the identities of some British officials and special forces. Over 16,000 Afghans were eligible under an existing scheme and a secret Afghanistan Response Route in April 2024 admitted 7,000 more. The MoD estimates resettlement at 128,000 per person and forecasts total costs to exceed 2bn.
The government is unable to calculate the total cost of a secret relocation plan it set up following the Afghan data leak, the public spending watchdog has said. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) estimates the cost of the massive data breach - and setting up a new scheme to relocate those whose lives might be at risk over it - to be 850m. But the National Audit Office (NAO) says the MoD has not provided enough evidence to give it confidence in that figure, which does not include legal expenses, or compensation claims likely to follow.
Last month it was revealed the details of almost 19,000 people had applied to move to the UK in order to flee the Taliban were leaked, when an official mistakenly emailed a spreadsheet that contained a hidden tab with the information in 2022. It contained information like names, contact details and family information of people who believed their cooperation with British forces during the Afghanistan war put them at risk of reprisals. The names of British officials including members of UK special forces were also included in the data breach.
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