U.S. plan to give lie tests to halt leaks

Press, 20 January 1982, Page 8

U.S. plan to give lie tests to halt leaks

NZPA Washington . The Reagan Administration is considering turning to the lie detector in its effort to head off “leaks" of classified information.

If any such information is disclosed without official authorisation — according to a plan now under study — officials who have handled the data would be required to have a polygraph (lie detector) test to show whether they were involved in the leak.

The polygraph plan, originating in the office of William Clark, President Reagan’s new national security assistant, is one of the most stringent proposals under consideration to implement

the information crackdown ordered a week ago. In ordering it. Mr Reagan contended that Government employees were disclosing “with impunity” confidential information that was critical to the functioning of the Government.

The claim was made that information leaks were hampering the conduct of foreign policy and injuring national security. Officials were unwilling to cite many specific examples, saying that to do so would be of further benefit to adversaries.

The White House moves, also involving proposed tight controls on reporters’ interviews with officials, produced considerable contro-

versy in the executive branch and a spate of conferences among Government public affairs officers on how to carry out Mr Reagan’s wishes.

Numerous officials argued that the moves would be counter-productive, failing to stop leaks and not encouraging public confidence in Government information programmes.

Those who took the latter view used an argument, among others, that is familiar when the Government cracks down on news leaks — that there will be a suspicion that embarrassing information as well as classified material is being suppressed.