Policing and Crime Bill

The new clause inserted by Amendment 37 is related to provisions already in the Bill in Clauses 6, 7 and 8. These clauses are intended to facilitate the work of police collaborative units. They ensure that, where two or more police forces reach collaboration agreements in respect of certain techniques regulating the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, the fact that investigative teams may comprise officers from different forces will not cause any operational problems for the authorisation of these techniques. This new clause has a similar effect in relation to covert human intelligence sources—CHIS. It may help if I explain precisely what a CHIS is. A CHIS is an individual who establishes or maintains a relationship with someone else for the covert purpose of obtaining information. A CHIS can be a member of the public—for example, a member of a drug-trafficking gang who is recruited to provide information to the police—or a member of a public authority, such as an undercover police officer who infiltrates a drug-trafficking gang to obtain information of a similar kind. In either case, RIPA requires each CHIS to have both a controller and a handler. These play different roles in managing and supervising the CHIS. The controller is responsible for overseeing the use made of a CHIS; the handler has day-to-day responsibility for dealing with the CHIS and for his security and welfare. With one key exception, the controller and handler of a CHIS have to be from the same authority or, in this case, police force. The exception to which I have referred is relevant to the need for this new clause. If the activities of a CHIS take place for the benefit of more than one public authority—in this case, more than one police force—the controller and handler can be from different authorities or forces. This exception will solve the problem for many collaborative units that tackle cross-border crime. Where a number of smaller forces agree to delegate all CHIS activity to a dedicated unit, it might not apply. This is because the dedicated unit may be required to investigate purely local, as well as cross-border, crime. In such circumstances, therefore, the controller and handler would have to be from the same force. Obviously, this would limit the point of having a joint investigative unit as part of a collaboration agreement. A further benefit of the new clause is that it will facilitate the way in which undercover officers are used across the country. As I have mentioned, the handler of a CHIS is responsible for his or her security or welfare. Often, an undercover officer’s own police force likes to keep this responsibility even if the officer is deployed in another force area or is tasked by another force. Under this new clause, such a division of labour between the home and the host force would be possible. We even anticipate that all 43 forces in England and Wales may choose to form an agreement to permit such a sharing of roles in relation to undercover officers. The eight forces in Scotland may also choose to form their own collaboration agreement to this effect. Unfortunately, the limited impact of the exception that I have described has come to light only recently. I apologise, therefore, for this new clause being tabled late in the passage of the Bill. It is, however, a relatively minor adjunct to the key provisions in Clauses 6, 7 and 8, which are intended to facilitate the work of police collaboration units, including, in some circumstances, the collaborative work of all 43 forces in England and Wales or the eight forces in Scotland. Amendments 38 to 41 are minor and technical. Where all the conduct authorised is likely to take place in Scotland, Section 46 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 prohibits Scottish police forces from authorising under RIPA unless the authorisation is granted or renewed in the interests of national security or the economic well-being of the United Kingdom. Clause 8 of the Bill replicates this restriction unnecessarily. These amendments remove this replication. I hope that noble Lords will agree with the benefits that these provisions will bring. I beg to move. Amendment 37 agreed.