The focus of this Report is the administration, policy and finance of the three Agencies - the Security Service, the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) and the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) - and issues concerning the wider intelligence community. The Agencies' resources have increased, and will continue to increase over the next three years, but they still have to make difficult decisions about priorities, often on a daily basis. The stark reality is that they cannot cover all the threats to the level desired. This report examines all the challenges the Agencies face in allocating their resources, how they use those resources, and how to ensure they are providing value for money (particularly in the current economic climate). It also examines common areas of concern such as resilience. The Report also examines the work of the wider intelligence community: it is clear that the Agencies can not work in isolation, and therefore in overseeing them the Committee must also examine the work of others. The Report therefore also comments on the Government's counter-terrorism strategy (CONTEST) and the work of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism in the Home Office; the intelligence structure in the Cabinet Office (including the Joint Intelligence Committee and the Assessments Staff); other Agencies within the community, such as the Defence Intelligence Staff, the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre and the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure; and issues which affect the community as a whole such as the use of intercept material as evidence in court, and the SCOPE IT system.
This report details the work of the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) for the period December 2008 to July 2009. The majority of the Committee's time during the reporting period was spent examining and taking evidence on the policy, administration and expenditure of the three intelligence and security Agencies and the wider intelligence community. The remainder of the Committee's time this year has been spent on two separate investigations: updating its "Review of the Intelligence on the London Terrorist Attacks on 7 July 2005" to reflect developments since the review was originally sent to the Prime Minister on 8 July 2008 (the completed review was published on 19 May 2009, Cm. 7617, ISBN 9780101761727); and conducting an investigation - as a result of allegations surrounding the case of Binyam Mohamed al-Habashi - into the policies and procedures that the Agencies follow with regard to contact with detainees, and also intelligence sharing more widely.
The annual report of the Intelligence and Security Committee 2006-2007 examines the policy, administration and expenditure of the three intelligence and security agencies, the work of the wider intelligence community, and the ban on the use of intercept as evidence in court. The Committee also conducted a detailed investigation into rendition (its report published as Cm. 7171, ISBN 9780101717120). The serious and sustained threat from international terrorism has, understandably, remained the main focus of the agencies. But the Committee is concerned that aspects of key intelligence and security work - including counter-espionage, serious crime work - are suffering as a consequence of the concentration on counter-terrorism. On the use of intercept, the Committee recognises its crucial importance to the capability of the agencies to protect the UK, its citizens and its interests overseas. Any move to permit the use of intercept evidence in court proceedings must be on a basis that does not jeopardise that capability. The Committee welcomes the Government's announcement that the Committee might be strengthened to maximise the effectiveness of its scrutiny role, and the proposal to publish a National Security Strategy. Finally, the Committee points to the one case where it has been refused access to documents. The Government's response to this report is issued alongside it (Cm. 7300, ISBN 9780101730020).
The Government's response to this report is issued simultaneously (Cm. 7845, ISBN 9780101784528). On title page: Intelligence Services Act 1994, Chapter 13
“An essential addition to the bookshelf of any practitioner who has to consider information rights, however often. The book is the best kind of practitioner text: practical and clear, but also scholarly, thoughtful and analytical.” (Sarah Hannett KC, Judicial Review) Retaining the position it has held since first publication, this is the 6th edition of the leading practitioner text on all aspects of information law. The latest edition includes a substantially enlarged set of chapters on appeals, enforcement, and remedies, as well as covering over 250 new judgments and decisions published since the last edition. Information Rights has been cited by the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and the Tribunals, and is used by practitioners, judges and all those who practise in the field, including journalists. The new edition maintains its style of succinct statements of principle, supported by case law, legislative provisions, and statutory guidance. The work is divided into 2 volumes. Volume 1 is a 1,500-page commentary, with a comprehensive coverage of the data protection regime, freedom of information and environmental information law, as well as other rights of access to official information such as local government legislation and the Public Records Act. There is detailed coverage of appeal and regulatory procedures. Volume 2 comprises extensive annotated statutory material, including the DPA 2018, the UK GDPR, FOIA, Tribunal rules and statutory guidance. Contributors: James Findlay KC, Olivia Davies, John Fitzsimons, Richard Hanstock and Dr Christina Lienen (all of Cornerstone Barristers); Antony White KC, Sarah Hannett KC, Sara Mansoori KC and Aidan Wills (all of Matrix Chambers); Aidan Eardley KC and Clara Hamer (both of 5RB); Rupert Bowers KC and Martin Westgate KC (both of Doughty Street Chambers); Henry King KC and Bankim Thanki KC (both of Fountain Court Chambers); James Maurici KC and Jacqueline Lean (both of Landmark Chambers); Gemma White KC (Blackstone Chambers); Oliver Sanders KC (1 Crown Office Row); Saima Hanif KC (3VB); Jennifer Thelen (39 Essex Chambers); and Simon McKay (McKay Law).
British leaders use spies and Special Forces to interfere in the affairs of others discreetly and deniably. Since 1945, MI6 has spread misinformation designed to divide and discredit targets from the Middle East to Eastern Europe and Northern Ireland. It has instigated whispering campaigns and planted false evidence on officials working behind the Iron Curtain, tried to foment revolution in Albania, blown up ships to prevent the passage of refugees to Israel, and secretly funnelled aid to insurgents in Afghanistan and dissidents in Poland. MI6 has launched cultural and economic warfare against Iceland and Czechoslovakia. It has tried to instigate coups in Congo, Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and elsewhere. Through bribery and blackmail, Britain has rigged elections as colonies moved to independence. Britain has fought secret wars in Yemen, Indonesia, and Oman -- and discreetly used Special Forces to eliminate enemies from colonial Malaya to Libya during the Arab Spring. This is covert action: a vital, though controversial, tool of statecraft and perhaps the most sensitive of all government activity. If used wisely, it can play an important role in pursuing national interests in a dangerous world. If used poorly, it can cause political scandal -- or worse. In Disrupt and Deny, Rory Cormac tells the remarkable true story of Britain's secret scheming against its enemies, as well as its friends; of intrigue and manoeuvring within the darkest corridors of Whitehall, where officials fought to maintain control of this most sensitive and seductive work; and, above all, of Britain's attempt to use smoke and mirrors to mask decline. He reveals hitherto secret operations, the slush funds that paid for them, and the battles in Whitehall that shaped them.
This is the fourth edition of what is the leading practitioner's text on freedom of information law. Providing in-depth legal analysis and practical guidance, it offers complete, authoritative coverage for anyone either making, handling or adjudicating upon requests for official information. The three years since the previous edition have seen numerous important decisions from the courts and tribunals in the area. These and earlier authorities supply the basis for clear statements of principle, which the work supports by reference to all relevant cases. The book is logically organised so that the practitioner can quickly locate the relevant text. It commences with an historical analysis that sets out the object of the legislation and its relationship with other aspects of public law. Full references to Hansard and other Parliamentary materials are provided. This is followed by a summary of the regime in five other jurisdictions, providing comparative jurisprudence which can assist in resolving undecided points. The potential of the Human Rights Act 1998 to support rights of access is dealt with in some detail, with reference to all ECHR cases. Next follows a series of chapters dealing with rights of access under other legislative regimes, covering information held by EU bodies, requests under the Data Protection Act and the Environmental Information Regulations, public records, as well as type-specific rights of access. These introduce the practitioner to useful rights of access that might otherwise be overlooked. They are arranged thematically to ensure ready identification of potentially relevant ones. The book then considers practical aspects of information requests: the persons who may make them; the bodies to whom they may be made; the time allowed for responding; the modes of response; fees and vexatious requests; the duty to advise and assist; the codes of practice; government guidance and its status; transferring of requests; third party consultation. The next 13 chapters, comprising over half the book, are devoted to exemptions. These start with two important chapters dealing with general exemption principles, including the notions of 'prejudice' and the 'public interest'. The arrangement of these chapters reflects the arrangement of the FOI Act, but the text is careful to include analogous references to the Environmental Information Regulations and the Data Protection Act 1998. With each chapter, the exemption is carefully analysed, starting with its Parliamentary history (giving full references to Hansard and other Parliamentary material) and the treatment given in the comparative jurisdictions. The analysis then turns to consider all court judgments and tribunal decisions dealing with the exemption. The principles are stated in the text, with footnotes giving all available references. Whether to prepare a case or to prepare a response to a request, these chapters allow the practitioner to get on top of the exemption rapidly and authoritatively. The book concludes with three chapters setting out the role of the Information Commissioner and the Tribunal, appeals and enforcement. The chapter on appeals allows the practitioner to be familiar with the processes followed in the tribunal, picking up on the jurisprudence as it has emerged in the last eight or so years. Appendices include: precedent requests for information; a step-by-step guide to responding to a request; comparative tables; and a table of the FOI Act's Parliamentary history. Finally, the book includes an annotated copy of the FOIA Act, the Data Protection Act 1998, the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, all subordinate legislation made under them, EU legislation, Tribunal rules and practice directions, and the Codes of Practice.ContributorsProf John Angel, former President of the Information TribunalRichard Clayton QC, 4-5 Gray's Inn SquareJoanne Clement, 11 KBWGerry Facena, Monkton ChambersEleanor Gray QC
Exploring how intelligence professionals view accountability in the context of twenty-first century politics How can democratic governments hold intelligence and security agencies accountable when what they do is largely secret? Using the UK as a case study, this book addresses this question by providing the first systematic exploration of how accountability is understood inside the secret world. It is based on new interviews with current and former UK intelligence practitioners, as well as extensive research into the performance and scrutiny of the UK intelligence machinery. The result is the first detailed analysis of how intelligence professionals view their role, what they feel keeps them honest, and how far external overseers impact on their work Moving beyond the conventional focus on oversight, the book examines how accountability works in the day to day lives of these organizations, and considers the impact of technological and social changes, such as artificial intelligence and social media. The UK is a useful case study as it is an important actor in global intelligence, gathering material that helps inform global decisions on such issues as nuclear proliferation, terrorism, transnational crime, and breaches of international humanitarian law. On the flip side, the UK was a major contributor to the intelligence failures leading to the Iraq war in 2003, and its agencies were complicit in the widely discredited U.S. practices of torture and “rendition” of terrorism suspects. UK agencies have come under greater scrutiny since those actions, but it is clear that problems remain. The book concludes with a series of suggestions for improvement, including the creation of intelligence ethics committees, allowing the public more input into intelligence decisions. The issues explored in this book have important implications for researchers, intelligence professionals, overseers, and the public when it comes to understanding and scrutinizing intelligence practice.
The Oxford Handbook of National Security Intelligence is a state-of-the-art work on intelligence and national security. Edited by Loch Johnson, one of the world's leading authorities on the subject, the handbook examines the topic in full, beginning with an examination of the major theories of intelligence. It then shifts its focus to how intelligence agencies operate, how they collect information from around the world, the problems that come with transforming "raw" information into credible analysis, and the difficulties in disseminating intelligence to policymakers. It also considers the balance between secrecy and public accountability, and the ethical dilemmas that covert and counterintelligence operations routinely present to intelligence agencies. Throughout, contributors factor in broader historical and political contexts that are integral to understanding how intelligence agencies function in our information-dominated age.
This study offers the first detailed examination of the varied means by which parliament through its committees and the work of individual members has sought to scrutinise the British intelligence and security agencies and the government's use of intelligence.
