Under a proposed law disclosing official information on Brexit that could damage the UK’s economic wellbeing would be espionage

Journalists who obtain leaked official material could be locked up under proposals drawn up for the government.

Disclosing contents of Brexit documents deemed harmful to the UK’s economic wellbeing could land journalists in jail under an extraordinary proposal requested by the Cabinet Office and unveiled by the Law Commission.

The Law Commission’s recommendations are in a 326-page consultation paper titled Protection of Official Data and uncovered by The Register, the online technology newspaper.

According to the commission, the proposed “redrafted offence” of espionage would “be capable of being committed by someone who not only communicates information, but also by someone who obtains or gathers it”.

It says there should “no restriction on who can commit the offence,” including hackers, leakers, elected politicians, journalists, and