MALONE v. THE UNITED KINGDOM JUGDMENT
19
(g) Telegrams. Telegrams may be shown to the police on the authority of the sender
or addressee. Apart from this the Post Office is prepared to give authority in
particular cases of serious crime where the inspection of a telegram is a matter of
urgency, and will do so at once on telephonic application, by a chief officer of
police or a responsible officer acting on his behalf, to the Chief Inspector, Post
Office Investigation Division. ...
...
1.69 ...
1.70 As regards any matter not covered by paragraphs 1.67 and 1.68 above, if the
police are in urgent need of information which the Post Office may be able to furnish
in connection with a serious criminal offence, the police officer in charge of the
investigation should communicate with the Duty Officer, Post Office Investigation
Division who will be ready to make any necessary inquiries of other branches of the
Post Office and to communicate any information which can be supplied."
In May 1984, the Home Office notified chief officers of police that
paragraph 1.68 (g), described as containing advice and information to the
police which was "in some respects misleading", was henceforth to be
regarded as deleted, with the exception of the first complete sentence. At the
same time, chief officers of police were reminded that the procedures for the
interception of communications were set out in the White Paper and
rigorously applied in all cases.
51.
The notes or transcriptions of intercepted communications are
retained in the police interception unit for a period of twelve months or for
as long as they may be required for the purposes of investigation. The
contents of the documentary record are communicated to the officers of the
appropriate police force engaged in the criminal investigation in question.
When the notes or transcriptions are no longer required for the purposes of
the investigation, the documentary record is destroyed (Birkett report, para.
118; White Paper, para. 15). The product of intercepted communications is
used exclusively for the purpose of assisting the police to pursue their
investigations: the material is not tendered in evidence, although the
interception may itself lead to the obtaining of information by other means
which may be tendered in evidence (Birkett report, para. 151; White Paper,
para. 16). In accordance with the recommendation of the Birkett Committee
(Birkett report, para. 101), information obtained by means of an interception
is never disclosed to private individuals or private bodies or to courts or
tribunals of any kind (White Paper, para. 17).
52. An individual whose communications have been intercepted is not
informed of the fact of interception or of the information thereby obtained,
even when the surveillance and the related investigations have terminated.
53. For security reasons it is the normal practice not to disclose the
numbers of interceptions made (Birkett report, paras. 119-121; White Paper,
paras. 24-25). However, in order to allay public concern as to the extent of