My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have spoken in this debate. Like the noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, I found the contribution from my noble friend Lord King very compelling. I hope that all noble Lords have received and read the business cases for the wider public authorities that I sent to all Peers last week. On the basis of those, I hope that noble Lords will appreciate the requirement that these public authorities have for the use of this power. I can again offer reassurance that they will be low users of the power but that it nevertheless remains an important tactic in detecting and preventing crimes that have a significant impact on the lives of the public.
Regarding why the police cannot just authorise for these wider public authorities, the police have a range of priorities and we have given various organisations
specific law enforcement responsibilities. That is why these public authorities have their own investigative functions, and they therefore need the tools to fulfil those functions.
If noble Lords support Amendment 33, in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Anderson, as the Government will, IPCO will have close to real-time oversight of every single criminal conduct authorisation granted by each public authority. This will be another important safeguard to ensure that the power is being used properly and appropriately. IPCO will almost definitely flag where this is not the case, or if there are training requirements.
I can confirm that my noble friend Lord King is absolutely right: there were originally 34 authorities. There are now 14, so, far from expanding that list, we are contracting it. In response to my noble friend Lady McIntosh of Pickering, I can confirm that the IPC will consider the authorisation of wider public authorities in his annual report, which will be public.
I would like to give a very topical example of how this power might be used by one of our wider public authorities, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which comes under the umbrella of the Department of Health and Social Care in the Bill. The MHRA has responsibility for protecting public health through the regulation of medicinal products, medical devices and blood and blood products in the UK. These products are not ordinary consumer goods and have the ability to cure, prevent and diagnose disease and enhance life. However, they can also cause serious harm. In particular, prescription medicines are, by their very nature, potent and are prescribed to patients by a healthcare professional based on clinical judgment and a patient’s history.
In the UK, strict legal controls govern these products and breaches of these regulations are criminal. Crime involving medicines and medical devices is increasing; they are profitable commodities and unscrupulous individuals and organised crime gangs, which put financial gain before human health, face less risk and less severe penalties compared to trading in, for example, narcotic drugs. The MHRA relies on powers under RIPA, including the power to authorise the use and conduct of CHIS, to investigate and disrupt criminal activity in this area.
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We are all aware of and welcome the fact that three vaccines have been authorised for use in response to Covid-19. Unfortunately, as a result, there is a risk of opportunities for a range of criminal activity relating to diverting authorised vaccines and supplying unauthorised versions. The results of that could be catastrophic for the health of the British public. The authorisation of CHIS to participate in offending is a crucial part of the MHRA’s armoury in tackling crime involving these products. The following is a hypothetical example of how it might deploy a participating CHIS in these circumstances.
A CHIS is deployed to engage with a corrupt healthcare professional who is offering medicines subject to control under misuse of drugs legislation and with links to an organised crime group. Large quantities of
Covid-19 vaccines that had been diverted from the legal supply chain are offered to the CHIS. An authorisation for CHIS participation in criminal conduct is issued to enable the CHIS to engage with the OCG to seek samples and conspire with those involved to purchase and distribute these diverted medicines into the black market.
The authorisation allows the CHIS to develop relationships with the OCG and work their way up the network by purchasing samples and discussing purchase prices for bulk supply. Information obtained by the CHIS ultimately assists the operational team in identifying those involved, including the licence holder responsible for the diversion from the legal supply chain and into the black market. In this scenario, we would expect that a number of arrests would be made and the supply chain secured, without the loss of this valuable product or confidence in the legitimate supply of the vaccine. This is a theoretical example but I am sure that noble Lords can see the potential for this to happen. My noble friend Lady McIntosh of Pickering mentioned the horsemeat scandal. The example I have given is just one instance of the very important work that these public authorities undertake to keep us all safe from harm. Each body that has been included in the Bill has provided operational case studies setting out its requirement for the use of this power, and they will all be subject to robust and independent oversight by the IPC.
The amendments in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Paddick, are more specific and restrict what the Armed Forces and the Home Office can authorise. My noble friend Lord King opined on that.
The use of CHIS, including in the context of criminality, is not restricted to military police forces. Other highly trained units of the Armed Forces are involved in national security investigations that involve the use of CHIS, including countering activities by hostile states, insider threats or terrorists—the noble Viscount, Lord Brookeborough, gave this example earlier—and this may require the authorisation of criminality. This work is comparable to that of the security and intelligence services and, like them, the wider Armed Forces continue to require these powers.
Similarly, Immigration Enforcement, under the umbrella of the Home Office, does very important work which goes much wider than modern slavery. It carries out criminal investigations into organised crime groups involved in organised immigration crime, document fraud, clandestine entry into the UK, human trafficking and money laundering the proceeds of crime.
We must not create unintended consequences by reducing these public authorities’ tools for keeping the public safe. I hope that the noble Baroness will withdraw the amendment.