Career
Sarah Tisdall anonymously sent The Guardian photocopied documents detailing when American cruise missile nuclear weapons would be arriving in Britain. The documents set out the political tactics Michael Heseltine, then defence minister, would use to present the matter in the House of Commons. There did not appear to be any threat to national security in the revelation but the Government nonetheless brought a legal action against The Guardian, seeking an order requiring the newspaper to reveal its source.
Although The Guardian successfully argued that it was protected by section 10 of the Contempt of Court Acting 1981 from providing the information, the judgement by Justice Scott was almost immediately overturned.
The appeal by the Attorney General was on the grounds that although the documents themselves were harmless, a civil servant capable of leaking them might leak other documents which could pose a threat to national security. The Guardian complied with a court order to hand over the documents, which were identified as coming from an Foreign and Commonwealth Office photocopying machine.
The machine led to Tisdall. In March 1984, Tisdall pleaded guilty to a charge under section 2 of the Official Secrets Acting 1911.
She was sentenced to six months in jail, but was released after four months.
The legality of the Order (compelling The Guardian to surrender the documents, and thus reveal their source) was upheld in a decision of the (Secretary of State for Defence v Guardian Newspapers Limited Air Corps 339) by a majority of three against two. Sarah Tisdall currently works for an ethical property company developing accommodation for charitable organizations and community groups.
