Serious Crime Bill [Lords]

That was an excellent question by the hon. Gentleman, but I shall require to give it some thought before I answer him. In all seriousness, I think that I had better take some advice before I tell him something that is inaccurate and misleading. With the exception of its training and accreditation functions, the Assets Recovery Agency is to be merged into the Serious Organised Crime Agency under clause 72. The Assets Recovery Agency is currently the one body in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that undertakes civil recovery investigations and proceedings to recover the proceeds of crime. This civil recovery role will now transfer effectively to SOCA, the Crown Prosecution Service, the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office, the Serious Fraud Office and the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland. In order to support these and other functions carried out under the 2002 Act by the director of the Assets Recovery Agency, there is provision in part 10 of the Act for the disclosure of information to and by the director. The main group of amendments make similar provision to part 10 to allow for the new bodies to be able to receive and disclose information to assist them in these, and other, functions. Amendments are either made to the parent legislation of the prosecution bodies where they already have what are known as information gateway provisions, or they create a new set of provisions for those organisations that do not have such legislative gateways. The flow of information is vital to ensure the success of the civil recovery regime in taking away the proceeds of crime. The usual safeguards and established practices and procedures are followed in the provisions to prevent any actual misuse of information or accusation of misuse. Amendments Nos. 25, 26 and 36 provide for a more effective and broad ability for the directors of the main prosecution agencies to be able to delegate their functions. The Bill confers the functions of civil recovery investigations and proceedings on to the directors. The operational reality will be that the respective directors will either delegate to their staff or contract out these functions. The amendments ensure a suitable level of flexibility in that process. Amendments Nos. 14, 24, 33, 34, 41, 48, 51 and 53 are minor consequential amendments reflecting the abolition of the Assets Recovery Agency. For example, the reference to that agency is to be omitted from schedule 1 to the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007.