Legal experts believe that the position of Minister of the Interior Hanna Birna Kristjánsdóttir in the leak affair, as stated in her response to the Ombudsman of Alþingi’s letter from August 25, posted on the ministry’s website on Tuesday, is based on a misunderstanding.
Hanna Birna stated in her letter that she couldn’t have influenced the investigation of the leak of information from her ministry by discussing it with Chief of Police Stefán Eiríksson, as the investigation was led by the State Prosecutor, ruv.is reports.
However, State Prosecutor Sigríður Friðjónsdóttir explained that while her office gave the police certain instructions regarding the investigation, its execution was in the hands of the police in compliance with the law.
Hanna Birna would not comment on the alleged misunderstanding.
Judicial affairs have now been moved from her ministry to the Prime Minister’s Office. Hanna Birna requested to be relieved of her judicial duties after her assistant was charged with leaking the information last month.
Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson was asked on RÚV’s news magazine Kastljós yesterday whether he would have reacted differently in the leak affair.
Sigmundur stated that he probably wouldn’t have discussed an investigation into his ministry with the police. However, he stressed that Hanna Birna is still trusted by the government to run the Ministry of the Interior.
