(Image source: euronews)

BY JESSICA SIBERT

ANCHOR ANA COMPAIN-ROMERO

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Why use a shredder when you can just throw it away? Trash cans in St. James Park in England could be holding more than your typical trash. Sky News reports British minister Oliver Letwin has been using the waste bins to discard some pretty important documents.

“Oliver Letwin, who is the cabinet office minister but more importantly one of David Cameron’s right hand men responsible for a lot of conservative party policy, has taken to wandering around St. James park at the back of Downing Street reading various documents and dumping them in wastepaper bins. The Mirror says some of this is quite sensitive--some of what they’ve got shows letters and documents showing extraordinary rendition, Al Qaeda’s links with Pakistan, and so on.”

The Daily Mirror, which first leaked the information, is baffled by the handling of such important documents. The Mirror also noted the news is another blow to the British government which has had its share of trouble this week.

“To the passerby, he looks like a businessman simply throwing away documents that are no longer of use. But…the papers he is dumping in waste bins around a park are highly sensitive dealing with national security and terrorism and containing the private details of constituents. The millionaire buffoon appears to show little concern for data protection – a subject he has previously warned others to be vigilant about.”

Labor Leader Ed Miliband told the Telegraph Letwin’s behavior is rather concerning.

“I think what is most worrying about it is the idea that the people who’ve written to him, his constituents, have their letters in the bin. If that’s the case, I don’t think that’s the right way to treat members of the public. That’s not what they would expect. And I think it’s a sign of a bit of an out-of-touch government. If we think about our own lives, we wouldn’t behave in that sort of way with confidential, sensitive information.”

But before apologizing for his actions, Letwin explained to the BBC that he didn’t think the papers were of any significance.

“None of it of course were classified and none were papers that originated from government. I was walking around dictating responses and simply wanted to make sure the pieces of paper were not weighing me down.”

A blogger for the Guardian found the Daily Mirror’s investigation more entertaining than enlightening.

“I don’t know about you, but I was greatly cheered by this morning’s pictures in the Daily Mirror of Oliver Letwin … Why? Because, as far as I can tell, it's more funny than serious – and we all need something to laugh about in these grim economic times.”

And a writer for the Daily Mail takes a different angle.  He says Letwin didn’t really do anything wrong.

“Let’s be fair – at least Letwin was reading it. It is possible to think of MPs who may neglect this area of their duties. None of this is out of character and treating such papers with less care than the Crown Jewels isn’t a hanging crime.”

British authorities have launched a security inquiry to confirm whether or not the documents actually contained any sensitive information.