[holding answer 9 October 2008]: No figures are available on how many times the tribunal has met in each of the years requested. However, the following table shows the number of applications it has received and investigations concluded for each of those years.
Period Applications received Investigations concluded 2 October-31 December 2001 102 71 1 January-31 December 2002 130 95 1 January-31 December 2003 109 100 1 January-31 December 2004 90 115 1 January-31 December 2005 80 93 1 January-31 December 2006 86 81 1 January-31 December 2007 66 83
The right hon. Lord Justice Mummery is President of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal and my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has not met him.
The Tribunal currently consists of six members. They are: Lord Justice Mummery (President); Mr. Justice Burton (Vice-President); Sir Richard Gaskeil; sheriff principal John McInnes QC; Mr. Peter Scott QC; and Mr. Robert Seabrook QC.
The Investigatory Powers Tribunal was established in October 2000 with minimal start up costs as it replaced existing bodies: the Interception of Communications Tribunal, the Security Service Tribunal, the Intelligence Services Tribunal and the complaints committee that dealt with Part III of the Police Act 1997. The Investigatory Powers Tribunal and the Interception of Communications Commissioner’s Office have a common Secretariat and the combined running costs of both for 2008-09 is £980,000.
The Investigatory Powers Tribunal’s statutory responsibilities are set out in Part IV of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000. There is no domestic right of appeal against Tribunal decisions.