2012 Annual Report of the Interception of Communications Commissioner
7.5 Inspection Results
As already indicated a team of inspectors, lead by a Chief Inspector, inspect on my behalf those
public authorities with the requisite powers under RIPA to acquire communications data. Due
to the larger number of public authorities with powers to acquire communications data, the
presentation of the results of communications data inspections differs from the presentation
of the results of the inspections I conduct in relation to lawful interception. The bodies being
inspected fall into groups: police forces and Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs), intelligence
agencies, local authorities and Other public authorities.
I now set out the key findings of the inspections in relation to these groups, along with some
further case studies where communications data has been used effectively in investigations.
7.5.1 Police Forces and Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs)
There are 43 police forces in England & Wales; 8 police forces in Scotland (to become 1 in April
2013); and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). These are all subject to inspection.
Additionally my inspectors inspect the British Transport Police; Port of Liverpool Police; Port
of Dover Police; Royal Military Police; Royal Air Force Police; Ministry of Defence Police; Royal
Navy Police and the Civil Nuclear Constabulary. LEAs comprise Her Majesty’s Revenue and
Customs (HMRC); the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA); the Scottish Crime and Drug
Enforcement Agency (SCDEA) (to become part of Police Scotland in April 2013); United Kingdom
Border Agency (UKBA); and the Child Exploitation & Online Protection Centre (CEOP) which
is part of SOCA.
In 2012 my inspection team conducted 42 inspections of police forces and LEAs. Generally, the
outcomes of the inspections were good, and the inspectors concluded that communications data
was being obtained lawfully and for a correct statutory purpose.
Figure 11 illustrates that 76% of the police forces and LEAs achieved a good level of compliance
overall. This represents a 7 percentage point increase on the previous year. However this
percentage should be treated with caution as the public authorities being inspected are not the
same every year. In addition for the first time since the inspection regime started in 2005, none
of the police forces emerged from their inspections with a poor level of compliance.
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