Johnny Mercer breaks silence on jail threat: Minister accuses inquiry judge of ignoring 'serious evidence' of alleged special forces murders in Afghanistan to 'fixate' on' pressuring' him into handing over whistleblowers' names

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Cabinet minister Johnny Mercer has accused a senior judge leading the Afghanistan public inquiry of ignoring evidence 'just to fixate on pressuring me'.

Mr Mercer, who has been threatened with jail unless he hands over the names of whistleblower soldiers to the inquiry, insisted revealing his sources would be 'the coward's way out'.

Speaking for the first time about facing the threat of prison for contempt of court, he said it was a 'pretty brutal' experience for him and his family.

The former Army captain told The Telegraph newspaper: 'This is the thing the judge doesn't understand. I give their names, they get pursued and in five years' time they take their own lives.

'I have to live with that for the rest of my life. For me it is a burden they should not have to carry.'

Cabinet minister Johnny Mercer has accused a senior judge leading the Afghanistan public inquiry of ignoring evidence 'just to fixate on pressuring me'

The public inquiry is led by Lord Justice Sir Charles Haddon-Cave (pictured), who described Mr Mercer's refusal to hand over names of whistleblowers as 'completely unacceptable'

He claimed the public inquiry, led by Lord Justice Sir Charles Haddon-Cave, was 'fixated on my sources' and risked ignoring 'other extremely important evidence I presented'.

He went on: 'This is where the inquiry seems to have lost its way by ignoring pretty serious evidence just to fixate on pressuring me. It is unfortunate.

'It just demonstrates to me they don't seem to know the subject they are dealing with or the people they are dealing with.'

Veterans minister Mr Mercer has repeatedly refused to name 'multiple officers' who told him about allegations of unlawful killings of Afghan civilians by rogue units inside the UK's Special Forces between 2010 and 2013.

He has provided written statements to the inquiry and gave evidence earlier this year, but said it would be a betrayal of trust to give his sources' names, despite an assurance the judge would treat his information 'in confidence'.

The judge described his refusal to comply as 'completely unacceptable' and he has been handed a section 21 notice which ordered him to hand over the names or face a potential prison sentence.

Earlier this week, the inquiry said the judge would delay a decision over Mr Mercer's fate until after the General Election on July 4.

Mr Mercer, 42, is the Conservative candidate for Plymouth Moor View, a seat he won from Labour in 2015.

He told The Telegraph: 'You hear time and again of whistleblowers putting their hand up in the military and then wishing they hadn't.

'There's an important concept here that people should be able to approach me as an elected Member of Parliament and have a reasonable expectation that I will protect their identity and I believe very firmly in that.

'I wouldn't have been able to reset this country's relationship with its veterans if people didn't have confidence in me and trust that I would put their interests above my own.'

Mr Mercer pictured speaking at the Independent Inquiry Relating to Afghanistan in February

Mr Mercer spoke about the impact the case had on his daughters, aged 15, 10 and three.

He said his middle daughter asked if he was going to jail each time he left the family home to go back to Westminster.

He paraphrased former US President Teddy Roosevelt, saying: 'My face truly is mired in blood and sweat and dust at the moment.'

He said: 'The cost of this experience on me is huge … It's not ideal … Every week I come up to London and they [his children] are like, "Daddy, are you going to prison?" and I just think it's so unnecessary.

'It's pretty brutal. They are worried I will be hoicked off.'

Mr Mercer, who served on three tours of Afghanistan with the British Army, said he had underestimated the 'personal strain' but struck a defiant tone as he spoke of the judge's power to imprison him.

He said: 'If he truly believes in the rightness of his position then he should send me to jail.

'He shouldn't give me a fine. He should have the courage of his convictions.

'If he is going to jail a cabinet minister for protecting whistleblowers then he should get on and do it and stop this waiting game.'

Mr Mercer said the judge risked being part of a 'wall of silence' that was 'obstructing the inquiry and access to the truth'.

Mr Mercer's wife Felicity (pictured with the MP in May 2022) said: 'He is not going to burn people. He has been backed into a corner and this is his only option. He needs to be able to look in a mirror for the rest of his life. He will take whatever punishment is meted out'

His wife Felicity, 44, said she fully supported his decision not to name the whistleblowers.

She said: 'This has been a horrible time because of all the uncertainty. It has been hard on the girls. But they understand that there are no other viable options for him.

'He is not going to burn people. He has been backed into a corner and this is his only option. He needs to be able to look in a mirror for the rest of his life. He will take whatever punishment is meted out.

'People in Plymouth have the measure of Johnny Mercer. They know he is a man of integrity and a man of his word.'