Written question asked by Harry Cohen (Labour) on Thursday, 26 April 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 30 April 2001. It was answered by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Monday, 30 April 2001 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list the types of information covered by the COSMIC security classification.

Answer: Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the types of information covered by the COSMIC security classification. [159675] Mr. Spellar: The term COSMIC is not a classification but a qualifying marking used by NATO. It signifies that the information is the property of NATO and remains the property of the originator and may not be passed outside NATO without the originator's consent. This qualifying marking is used only with top secret information, the unauthorised disclosure of which would result in exceptionally grave damage to NATO. "COSMIC top secret" is the highest classification marking in NATO and it is equivalent to "UK top secret".

Secondary information