§ Brian WhiteTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what statutory investigatory powers the Department has; which ones will be superseded by use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000; and what plans he has for removing these legacy powers. [1361161]
§ Ruth KellyThe Revenue Departments (Inland Revenue and Customs and Excise) have a wide range of investigatory powers to access communications data, as defined by the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, (RIPA) Pt 1, Chapter 2, Section 21(4), within the following legislation: Taxes Management Act 1970, Drugs Trafficking Act 1994, Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, Customs and Excise Management Act 1979, VAT Act 1994, Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 and Proceeds Of Crime Act 2002. The Treasury does not itself have investigatory powers to access communications data.
When Part One Chapter Two of RIPA, 2000 is implemented, the Revenue Departments expect in line with Home Office policy to use only powers contained in that Act to access communications data. The powers currently used are not exclusive to communications data and the Revenue Departments do not propose to seek their repeal.