Chancellor's secret plans go missing

Treasury chiefs were thrown into panic after an aide to Gordon Brown left a briefcase full of official secrets in a London pub, it was reported today.

The bag, containing economic plans and documents which could have thrown the stock market into turmoil, disappeared in the Red Lion pub in Whitehall, a favourite with the Westminster political class.

Its owner, William Price, 31, a secretary in the Chancellor's private office, called the police.

A source said: "He was frantic with worry. The briefcase contained documents with extremely confidential and share-sensitive information. Its disappearance caused quite a panic." After two days of desperate searches, the mystery was solved when a colleague, who had accidentally picked up the bag, returned it intact.

The episode is the latest in a series of security breaches involving missing bags. Last month, plans drawn up by police for the personal protection of Home Secretary David Blunkett were found in the street outside a Sheffield pub.

Two years ago, an MI5 agent put his laptop, full of secrets about Northern Ireland, on the floor while buying a train ticket - only to find it snatched by a thief.

About the same time, two more laptops containing sensitive information were lost, by an Army chief and a secret services agent.