128
Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (c. 25)
Part 6 — Bulk warrants
Chapter 1 — Bulk interception warrants
(a)
(b)
154
the Secretary of State;
the person to whom the warrant is or was addressed.
Additional safeguard for confidential journalistic material
Where—
(a) a communication which has been intercepted in accordance with a bulk
interception warrant is retained, following its examination, for
purposes other than the destruction of the communication, and
(b) it is a communication containing confidential journalistic material,
the person to whom the warrant is addressed must inform the Investigatory
Powers Commissioner as soon as is reasonably practicable.
(For provision about the grounds for retaining material obtained under a
warrant, see section 150.)
155
Offence of breaching safeguards relating to examination of material
(1)
A person commits an offence if—
(a) the person selects for examination any intercepted content or
secondary data obtained under a bulk interception warrant,
(b) the person knows or believes that the selection of that intercepted
content or secondary data for examination does not comply with a
requirement imposed by section 152 or 153, and
(c) the person deliberately selects that intercepted content or secondary
data for examination in breach of that requirement.
(2)
A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—
(a) on summary conviction in England and Wales—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months (or 6
months, if the offence was committed before the
commencement of section 154(1) of the Criminal Justice Act
2003), or
(ii) to a fine,
or to both;
(b) on summary conviction in Scotland—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or
(ii) to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,
or to both;
(c) on summary conviction in Northern Ireland—
(i) to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or
(ii) to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,
or to both;
(d) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
2 years or to a fine, or to both.
(3)
No proceedings for any offence which is an offence by virtue of this section
may be instituted—
(a) in England and Wales, except by or with the consent of the Director of
Public Prosecutions;
(b) in Northern Ireland, except by or with the consent of the Director of
Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.