SO15 War Crimes Guidance on Mass Death Due to Climate Policies

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.24.038337

I note you seek access to the following information:

I am writing to request information about the MPS's handling of war crimes, specifically the mass death that is being enabled through government policies surrounding climate.

Human induced climate breakdown is a huge threat to UK national security and, according to the latest, peer-reviewed science is likely to result in millions of premature deaths between now and 2050, including those of UK citizens.

The UK government has been taken to court for failing to meet its legally-binding climate targets set out in the Climate Change Act (2008). The High Court ruled that the UK government's climate policies were not fit-for-purpose and breached the Climate Change Act. As a result, the government is complicit in current and future climate-related deaths both in the UK and around the world as a result of its actions.

According to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, it is the duty of every State to exercise its criminal jurisdiction over those responsible for international crimes. The ICC can intervene where a State is unable or unwilling to genuinely carry out the investigation and prosecute the perpetrators.
'Oblique intent' is referenced in Article 30.2 (b) of the Rome Statute, which states that death or harm doesn't have to be a primary intention for someone to be held criminally responsible. They simply have to be 'aware that it will occur in the ordinary course of events'.

I understand the MPS has a dedicated unit within the Counter Terrorism Command (SO15) that deals with war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. I would like to know the following:

1. Has the war crimes team opened any investigations into potential crimes against humanity committed by the UK government connected to the climate crisis since 2019?
2. What legal advice has the war crimes team been given about pursuing prosecutions of government officials for crimes against humanity in connection with the climate crisis?
3. Does the war crimes team have any active investigations into crimes against humanity in connection with the climate crisis? If so, how many?

Decision

I have today decided to disclose some of the requested information. Some data has been withheld as it is exempt from disclosure and therefore this response serves as a Refusal Notice under Section 17 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) by virtue of the following exemptions:

Section 42 - Legal Professional Privilege

Reason for decision

Section 42 - Legal Professional Privilege - A client’s ability to speak freely and frankly with legal advisers to obtain appropriate legal advice is a fundamental requirement of the English legal system. The concept of legal professional privilege (LPP) protects the confidentiality of communications between a lawyer and client. This helps to ensure complete fairness in legal proceedings. Confirming or denying whether information is held in this instance would be likely to negatively impact this confidentiality and also inadvertently reveal whether or not any government officials were subject to a war crime investigation.

Whilst it is recognised that there is a public interest in the transparency of policing operations and providing assurance that the police service is appropriately and effectively engaging with the threat posed by various groups or individuals, there is a very strong public interest in safeguarding the integrity of any scoping or investigative enquiries conducted by the War Crimes Team in this highly sensitive area.
As much as there is public interest in knowing that policing activity is appropriate and balanced this will only be overridden in exceptional circumstances. Areas of interest to the police are sensitive to the extent that they reveal local intelligence.

The MPS is reliant upon the provision of impartial legal advice to inform and guide its decision-making. To confirm or deny the War Crimes Team were in receipt of any legal advice would be likely to impede the free and frank channels of communication that exist between the MPS and professional legal advisors. This is because, over time, those seeking legal advice on behalf of the MPS and/or providing advice to employees of the MPS, would be less likely to be candid in future communications owing to the risk of future release. This would affect the quality of advice provided by legal advisors to the MPS and the ability of the MPS to obtain open, informed and unbiased legal advice in the future.

I have determined that confirmation or denial that the War Crimes Team had sought and received any legal advice concerning pursuing prosecutions of government officials’ for crimes against humanity in connection to the climate crisis since 2019 would not be in the public interest.

However, this should not be taken as necessarily indicating that any information that would meet your request exists or does not exist.

Disclosure

Please see below response for Questions 1 and 3.

Q1 - Has the war crimes team opened any investigations into potential crimes against humanity committed by the UK government connected to the climate crisis since 2019?

No

Q3 - Does the war crimes team have any active investigations into crimes against humanity in connection with the climate crisis?

No

If so, how many?

N/A

With regards to Q2 - What legal advice has the war crimes team been given about pursuing prosecutions of government officials for crimes against humanity in connection with the climate crisis?

The Metropolitan Police Service can neither confirm or deny whether it holds any information relevant to this part of your request as the duty in Section 1 (1) (a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (the Act) does not apply by virtue of the following exemption: Section 42(2) - Legal Professional Privilege