British journalists could face 2 to 14 years in prison for publishing material that compromises the government, writes the Daily Mail.
According to the newspaper, reporters who work with the leaked documents will not be protected from prosecution if charged under a new law aimed at “tightening measures against foreign agents.”
The publication notes that London intends to update the current law, which was adopted back in 1989. Human rights activists and the Commission on Legislation, which prepared the amendments to the document, notes that some kind of protection for journalists who work with compromising documents should still be provided.
Recall that the British government is conducting a large-scale investigation into the loss of secret documents about the passage of the destroyer Defender in the Black Sea. A folder with documents was found at a bus stop by a bystander who handed the papers to the BBC television corporation.