HN18

This article is part of the Undercover Research Portal at Powerbase - investigating corporate and police spying on activists

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Part of a series on undercover police officers
'HN18'
Alias:	unknown
Deployment:	'last period of existence of SDS'
Unit:	Special Demonstration Squad
Targets:	unknown

HN8 is the cipher given to a former undercover officer with the Special Demonstration Squad, deployed in ' the 'last period of existence' of the unit into at least two group and reported on others.

• For details of the N-numbers cipher system see the N officers page.

In the Undercover Policing Inquiry

• 11 May 2018, directed that anonymity applications for HN18 were to be filed by 31 May 2018 for both the MPS legal team and the Designated Lawyers team.

• 21 June 2018: announced that the Chair of the Inquiry, John Mitting was 'minded to' restrict the real name of HN4 but refuse the application over the cover name. However, he gave HN18 an opportunity to provide notification by 26 June 2018 if they wished a closed hearing in respect of their application, with skeleton argument setting out objects to be provided by 29 June 2018.

In his 'minded to' note, Mitting wrote:

The risk to the safety of HN18 posed by members of the targeted groups is negligible and the risk of interference by them in family and private life is low. The deployments are of interest to the Inquiry, as is the evidence which HN18 can give about the management and closing down of the Special Demonstration Squad.

In the opinion of Prof Fox, who reported on the condition of HN18 on 12 March 2018, HN18 suffers from two moderately severe mental health conditions, which would be exacerbated by publication of the real or cover name. I accept that, if the real name were to be published, there is some risk of interference in the right of HN18 to respect for private and family life and of some impact on HN18's mental health. Publication of the real name is not necessary to permit the Inquiry to fulfil its terms of reference... However, for reasons which are explained in the closed note which accompanies these reasons, I am unconvinced that a restriction order in respect of the cover name of HN18 would have a material impact on mental health or well-being. Further, the giving of evidence about the deployments would be likely to lead members of targeted groups to identify HN18's cover name for themselves. A restriction order in respect of the cover name would, therefore, probably serve no useful purpose.