Surveillance

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many requests were (a) made and (b) granted to use powers under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 by (i) each local authority and (ii) each NHS trust in England in (A) 2003-04 and (B) 2007-08. (291737)

The Government do not have figures for individual public authorities. The total number of requests for each covert investigative technique is available in the published, independent annual reports of the Interception of Communications Commissioner and the Chief Surveillance Commissioner. These give the following:

*Table on covert investigatory powers authorised*
Interception	2003	2007
Authorised by the Home Secretary or Scottish Executive	1,983	2,026
Communications data	2003	2007
By all public authorities	¹—	519,260
By local authorities	¹—	1,707
Intrusive Surveillance	2003/04	2007/08
By law enforcement agencies	447	355
Property interference	2003/04	2007/08
By law enforcement agencies	2,483	2,493
Directed surveillance	2003/04	2007/08
By law enforcement agencies	26,986	18,767
By other public authorities	6,398	9,535
CHIS	2003/04	2007/08
By law enforcement agencies	5,907	4,498
By other public authorities	273	234
¹ Not given Note: Figures taken from annual reports from the relevant oversight Commissioner

The figures are not broken down further. Copies of the Commissioners' reports are in the House Library.

Volume 497: debated on Wednesday 14 October 2009