Watch: No UK personnel at risk from US security leak, says Pollard
The Armed Forces Minister has said that the UK still has "high confidence" that its operational security measures "remain intact" despite revelations of a major security breach.
Senior American officials, including the secretary of defence and national security adviser, texted plans for an attack on Yemen to a group chat on the messaging app, Signal, accidentally including a journalist.
Luke Pollard told the Defence Committee that no British service personnel had been put at risk as a result.
Mr Pollard said: "All UK service personnel are covered by our normal approach to operational security, and the committee will understand that I won't go into the details of how we keep our involvement in any support for military operations in the Red Sea or anywhere else (secure).
"But, we've got high confidence that the measures that we have got with our allies, including the United States, remain intact."
The US carried out a series of air strikes against the rebel Houthi militant group in Yemen following continued attacks on shipping in the Red Sea – an operation in which the UK provided air-to-air refuelling support.
But two hours beforehand, details of the attack had been sent to a Signal group chat that included the US vice-president JD Vance, defence secretary Pete Hegseth and secretary of state Marco Rubio, among others.
Signal chats are encrypted but are not approved by the US government for discussion of classified material.
Watch: Houthi facilities targeted by US jets in Yemen
The use of the app to provide details of the airstrikes came to light because one participant had accidentally added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine, Jeffrey Goldberg, to the group.
The US National Security Council said the group chat "appears to be authentic", adding that it was investigating how Mr Goldberg came to be included.
When asked what the consequences would be if something similar happened in the UK by Liberal Democrat committee member and former Army Officer Mike Martin, Mr Pollard said: "We should all, regardless of our role within defence, take our information-sharing seriously.
"There would be a clear consequence and disciplinary process for anyone that wouldn't be following those precise rules."
Mr Martin said: "It's not acceptable, is it?"
Mr Pollard replied: "If anyone was sharing information in our system, that were sharing it outside of the authorised systems that allow that data sharing, then certainly we would be. We have clear procedures in place."
The Liberal Democrats are calling for a review of the UK's intelligence-sharing arrangements with the United States in light of the breach.
