Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Bill - continued	House of Lords

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	PART III
	INVESTIGATION OF ELECTRONIC DATA PROTECTED BY ENCRYPTION ETC.
	Power to require disclosure of key
Notices requiring disclosure of key.	46. - (1) This section applies where any protected information-
	(a) has come into the possession of any person by means of the exercise of a statutory power to seize, detain, inspect, search or otherwise to interfere with documents or other property, or is likely to do so;
	(b) has come into the possession of any person by means of the exercise of any statutory power to intercept communications, or is likely to do so;
	(c) has come into the possession of any person by means of the exercise of any power conferred by an authorisation under section 21(3) or under Part II, or as a result of the giving of a notice under section 21(4), or is likely to do so;
	(d) has come into the possession of any person as a result of having been provided or disclosed in pursuance of any statutory duty (whether or not one arising as a result of a request for information), or is likely to do so; or
	(e) has, by any other lawful means not involving the exercise of statutory powers, come into the possession of any of the intelligence services, the police or the customs and excise, or is likely so to come into the possession of any of those services, the police or the customs and excise.
	(2) If any person with the appropriate permission under Schedule 1 believes, on reasonable grounds-
	(a) that a key to the protected information is in the possession of any person,
	(b) that the imposition of a requirement to disclose the key is-
	(i) necessary on grounds falling within subsection (3), or
	(ii) likely to be of value for purposes connected with the exercise or performance by any public authority of any statutory power or statutory duty,
	(c) that the imposition of such a requirement is proportionate to what is sought to be achieved by its imposition, and
	(d) that the key cannot reasonably be obtained by the person with the appropriate permission without the giving of a notice under this section,
	the person with that permission may, by notice to the person whom he believes to have possession of the key, require the disclosure of the key.
	(3) A requirement to disclose a key is necessary on grounds falling within this subsection if it is necessary-
	(a) in the interests of national security;
	(b) for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime; or
	(c) in the interests of the economic well-being of the United Kingdom.
	(4) A notice under this section requiring the disclosure of any key-
	(a) must be given in writing or (if not in writing) must be given in a manner that produces a record of its having been given;
	(b) must describe the protected information to which the notice relates;
	(c) must specify the matters falling within subsection (2)(b)(i) or (ii) by reference to which the notice is given;
	(d) must specify the office, rank or position held by the person giving it;
	(e) must state whether or not the notice is one that may be complied with by the provision of the protected information in an intelligible form (without the disclosure of a key);
	(f) must specify the time by which the notice is to be complied with;
	(g) must specify the manner in which any key is to be disclosed (or information provided) in compliance with the notice; and
	(h) subject to paragraph (a), may take such form and be given in such manner as the person giving it thinks fit.
	(5) A notice under this section shall not require the disclosure of a key to any person other than-
	(a) the person giving the notice; or
	(b) such other person as may be specified in or otherwise identified by, or in accordance with, the provisions of the notice.
	(6) A notice under this section shall not require the disclosure of any key which-
	(a) is intended to be used for the purpose only of generating electronic signatures; and
	(b) has not in fact been used for any other purpose.
	(7) Schedule 1 (definition of the appropriate permission) shall have effect.
Disclosure of information in place of key.	47. - (1) Subsection (2) applies where-
	(a) a person is required by a section 46 notice to disclose a key to any protected information; and
	(b) compliance with the requirement by the provision of the information in an intelligible form is authorised for the purposes of this section.
	(2) The person required to disclose the key-
	(a) may use it to obtain access to the protected information, or to put that information into an intelligible form; and
	(b) shall be taken for the purposes of this Part to have complied with the requirement to disclose the key if, by the time by which he is required to disclose it to any person, he has instead provided that person with the information in an intelligible form.
	(3) Compliance with a requirement to disclose a key to protected information by the provision of the information in an intelligible form is authorised for the purposes of this section unless-
	(a) the person who for the purposes of Schedule 1 granted the permission for the giving of a section 46 notice in relation to that information, or
	(b) any person whose permission for the giving of a such a notice in relation to that information would constitute the appropriate permission under that Schedule,
	has given a direction that the requirement can be complied with only by the disclosure of the key itself.
	(4) A person shall not give a direction for the purposes of subsection (3) unless he believes-
	(a) that there are special circumstances of the case which mean that the purposes for which it was believed necessary to impose the requirement in question would be defeated, in whole or in part, if the direction were not given; and
	(b) that the giving of the direction is proportionate to what is sought to be achieved by prohibiting any compliance with the requirement in question otherwise than by the disclosure of the key itself.
Arrangements for payments for key disclosure.	48. - (1) It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to ensure that such arrangements are in force as he thinks appropriate for requiring or authorising, in such cases as he thinks fit, the making to persons to whom section 46 notices are given of appropriate contributions towards the costs incurred by them in complying with such notices.
	(2) For the purpose of complying with his duty under this section, the Secretary of State may make arrangements for payments to be made out of money provided by Parliament.

Prepared 10 May 2000