Investigation into classified government documents found at bus stop
- Published
The government has said it is carrying out a thorough investigation into how classified defence documents were found at a bus stop in Kent.
Defence minister Jeremy Quin told MPs he was "very sorry" it had happened.
He said it appeared to be a mistake made by a senior official, and the individual's access to sensitive material has been suspended.
The documents - which were handed to the BBC - contained details of HMS Defender and the military.
They were found in a soggy heap behind a bus stop in Kent early on Tuesday morning.
In a statement to the Commons on Monday, Mr Quin said the documents included a paper that was marked "secret UK eyes only".
He said the senior government official contacted his department to report they were missing on Tuesday.
"This is a mistake, it appears," said Mr Quin. "I don't want to prejudge the investigation but it appears it was a mistake made by an individual."
"I'm very sorry this incident has happened and the investigation will be thorough."
He added: "The papers have now been recovered from the BBC and are being assessed as I speak to check that all documents missing have been recovered and what mitigation actions might be necessary," said Mr Quin.
"The investigation will look at the actions of individuals, including the printing of the papers through to the management of the reported incident, and the underlying processes for the printing and carriage of papers in defence."
The defence minister said he expected the investigation to be completed "shortly" - but that he hoped it could be as little as a week.
Asked whether the UK has told its allies, Mr Quin said: "We have certainly informed the United States."
One set of documents discusses the likely Russian reaction to the passage of British ship HMS Defender through Ukrainian waters off the Crimea coast.
On Wednesday more than 20 Russian aircraft and two coastguard ships shadowed the warship as it sailed about 12 miles (19km) off Crimea.
Another details plans for a possible UK military presence in Afghanistan after the US-led Nato operation there ends.