Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (c. 25)
Part 2 — Lawful interception of communications
Chapter 1 — Interception and examination with a warrant
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(4)
If it is not reasonably practicable for a warrant to be signed by the person who
has taken the decision to issue it, the warrant may be signed by a senior official
designated by the Secretary of State or (as the case may be) the Scottish
Ministers for that purpose.
(5)
In such a case, the warrant must contain a statement that—
(a) it is not reasonably practicable for the warrant to be signed by the
person who took the decision to issue it, and
(b) the Secretary of State or (as the case may be) a member of the Scottish
Government has personally and expressly authorised the issue of the
warrant.
(6)
In this section “senior official” means—
(a) in the case of a warrant to be issued by the Secretary of State, a member
of the Senior Civil Service or a member of the Senior Management
Structure of Her Majesty’s Diplomatic Service;
(b) in the case of a warrant to be issued by the Scottish Ministers, a member
of the staff of the Scottish Administration who is a member of the Senior
Civil Service.
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Requirements that must be met by warrants
(1)
A warrant under this Chapter must contain a provision stating whether it is a
targeted interception warrant, a targeted examination warrant or a mutual
assistance warrant.
(2)
A warrant issued under this Chapter must be addressed to the person by
whom, or on whose behalf, the application for the warrant was made.
(3)
A warrant that relates to a particular person or organisation, or to a single set
of premises, must name or describe that person or organisation or those
premises.
(4)
A warrant that relates to a group of persons who share a common purpose or
who carry on (or may carry on) a particular activity must—
(a) describe that purpose or activity, and
(b) name or describe as many of those persons as it is reasonably
practicable to name or describe.
(5)
A warrant that relates to more than one person or organisation, or more than
one set of premises, where the conduct authorised or required by the warrant
is for the purposes of a single investigation or operation, must—
(a) describe the investigation or operation, and
(b) name or describe as many of those persons or organisations, or as many
of those sets of premises, as it is reasonably practicable to name or
describe.
(6)
A warrant that relates to any testing or training activities must—
(a) describe those activities, and
(b) name or describe as many of the persons within subsection (7) as it is
reasonably practicable to name or describe.
“Testing or training activities” has the meaning given by section 17(3).
(7)
A person is within this subsection if—
(a) in the case of a targeted interception warrant—