Amnesty International called for the suspension of the Official Secrets Act yesterday to enable former intelligence officers to give evidence during the government’s child abuse inquiry.

The call follows claims by an ex-soldier involved in military intelligence that he was told to shelve an investigation into sexual abuse at a boys’ home in Northern Ireland in the 1970s.

Home Secretary Theresa May has faced widespread calls from politicians and lobbyists to include the Kincora Boys’ Home in the child abuse inquiry following revelations about serial sex offenders including Jimmy Savile.