A Tory minister discussed sensitive information linked to a controversial flight from Inverness to Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine, we can reveal.
The “secret communications” involved Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and featured confidential information shared by at least one unnamed foreign country.
However, the UK Government is refusing to publicly release the memos, saying it could damage diplomatic relations connected to Russia’s invasion.
In the wake of the revelation, Inverness SNP MP Drew Hendry said the circumstances surrounding the mysterious flight were getting “murkier and murkier”.
He urged Mr Shapps to explain why the private charter was allowed to depart the Highland capital on February 26.
Flight mystery
A family of three was believed to have been on board the Estonian-registered Panaviatic jet when it left Inverness bound for Moscow’s Vnukovo airport.
On social media, Mr Shapps publicly accused Inverness Airport of having “failed to comply” with a ban on Russia flights, which was introduced through a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) the day before the departure.
However, he faced calls to apologise to the airport after we revealed the flight was cleared for take-off by the UK Government’s Border Force, the police’s Special Branch and air traffic controllers.
Now it has emerged Mr Shapps was privately discussing sensitive information in connection to the flight at around the same time.
While the Scottish Government has released its ministerial communications about the flight under freedom of information laws, the UK Government has twice refused.
It initially said it would be too expensive and time-consuming to disclose the correspondence.
Our second FOI request only asked for the disclosure of Mr Shapps’ communications relating to the flight on February 26, 27 and 28 this year.
This whole episode gets murkier and murkier.”
Drew Hendry MP
But in response, the Department for Transport (DFT) said: “To release this information could have detriment to the UK’s world standing and ongoing diplomatic relations relating to the wider Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“The detriment would be caused by countries not trusting the UK with their information and in some cases be in breach of international conventions of sharing information between countries.”
The DFT also said releasing the communications would be of detriment to the “free and frank advice given to the minister to aid collective ministerial decision making at a Cabinet committee”.
Mr Hendry, the SNP MP for Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey, has previously written to Mr Shapps demanding answers about the Moscow flight.
On the latest development, he said: “This whole episode gets murkier and murkier – the UK Government has now confirmed it has secret communications relating to this private jet flight from Inverness to Moscow but is refusing to release the material.
“Grant Shapps must not only apologise for scapegoating Inverness Airport, he must also explain why this flight was allowed to take off in the first place.
“For as long as Tory ministers continue to keep the details of this flight secret from the public, suspicion will rightly grow as to what they have to hide.”
Where did the jet go?
The plane left the Highland capital just two days after Russia invaded Ukraine and only 12 hours after a ban on Russian flights came into force.
The jet travelled from Moscow to Geneva then onto Amsterdam on February 25.
It flew to Inverness, Moscow and back to Geneva on the following day
We previously reported that Panaviatic, the charter company, was linked to a bank at the centre of an Estonian money laundering probe.
On June 30, the SNP challenged Mr Shapps about the flight during a Commons exchange.
The Conservative minister said: “As a pilot, I understand how NOTAMs – notices to aviation – work: they are the responsibility of either the pilot or the aviation operator, which in this case was the airport, to follow.
“There is simply no excuse for not following them.”