§ The Earl of Northeskasked Her Majesty's Government:
For what reason the Home Office is now declining to commission an independent inquiry into the effects of the Regulations of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, despite having previously accepted the recommendation from the Better Regulation Task Force that a review of Parts I and III of the Act should be considered; and [HL1653]
How the effectiveness of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 in terms of its impact upon law enforcement and cybercrime can be properly assessed in the absence of the independent review of its operation as recommended by the Better Regulation Task Force; and [HL1654]
Whether the decision of the Home Office not to commission an independent inquiry into the effects of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 is consistent with the Act's provisions for a technical advisory board. [HL1655]
§ Lord Bassam of BrightonThe Government's position has always been that reviewing the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) is a role which properly falls to government themselves to take on. To be meaningful, any such review must have command of the full picture, including the use by the United Kingdom's law enforcement, security and intelligence agencies of investigatory techniques which are, by their very nature, covert and sensitive.
As indicated in the response to the report on e-commerce from the Better Regulation Task Force, the Government will keep Parts I and III of RIPA under review in order to assess the effectiveness of the provisions and their effect on business. As the Government noted in giving this undertaking, independent commissioners already have a statutory responsibility to oversee the operation of the powers in Parts I and III of RIPA and to report annually on how the Act is working.
As the Government have also indicated, the technical advisory board to be established under Section 13 of RIPA, comprising a balance of industry and government representatives under an independent chairperson, will have an important role in assessing and advising the Secretary of State on any requirements placed on communications service providers to maintain a reasonable interception capability.
§ The Earl of Northeskasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether Directive 93/34/EC, as amended by Directive 98/48/EC, was applied to the Regulation 160WA of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 before its introduction into Parliament as a Bill; and, if not, why not. [HL1691]
§ Lord Bassam of BrightonThe European Commission was notified of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 upon its publication in February 2000.