CHAPTER 15: RECOMMENDATIONS
117.
The IPT should where appropriate require ISIC to provide it with assistance,
particularly of an investigative nature, as it has several times required the existing
Commissioners to do pursuant to RIPA s68(2).
Intelligence and Security Committee
118.
There should continue to be a committee of parliamentarians with oversight of the
work of the security and intelligence agencies and trusted by them with classified
information, not only because parliamentary oversight is desirable in principle but
because of the knowledge and understanding that its members bring to parliamentary
debates with national security implications, e.g. in relation to terrorism legislation and
proscription orders.
119.
The functions of ISIC and the ISC should not overlap. In particular, there should be
no duplication of reporting functions or resources between the ISC and ISIC.
120.
It should be for Parliament to consider whether:
(a)
to retain the system of Prime Ministerial appointment but require the Chair to
be a member of a political party not represented in government;
(b)
to transfer the ISC’s investigative resource in due course to ISIC; and/or
(c)
to recast the ISC as a Select Committee (either on its own or merged with the
Defence Select Committee) whose members would be elected in the normal
way, and to which ISIC would report where necessary in closed session.
TRANSPARENCY
121.
It should be recognised that the operation of covert powers is and should remain
secret, and that transparency in relation to operational matters is not a realistic goal.
122.
Public authorities should however be as open as possible (cf. ISC Report,
Recommendation BBB). They should consider how they can better inform Parliament
and the public about why they need their powers, how they interpret those powers,
the broad ways in which those powers are used and why any additional capabilities
might be required. They should contribute to any consultations on the new law, so
as to ensure that policy-making is informed by the best evidence.
123.
The statistics provided by ISIC should be as informative as possible: the proposals
put forward by IOCCO in its December 2014 submission to this Review provide a
useful starting point.
124.
Both ISIC and the IPT should be as open as possible in their work, and should seek
actively to make the public aware of their role as a check on the powers of public
authorities.
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