Legislation
The oversight mechanisms are founded in three key pieces of legislation:
-
the Security
Service Act 1989 (amended 1996) [External
website], which placed the Service under the authority of the
Home Secretary and which set out the functions of the Service and the
responsibilities of the Director General;
-
the Intelligence
Services Act 1994 [External website], which,
amongst other things, established a framework for the Intelligence and
Security Committee to exercise oversight of the expenditure,
administration and policy of the three Agencies; and
-
the Regulation of
Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) [External
website] which established a Commissioner for the Interception of
Communications, a Commissioner for the Intelligence Services and a
Tribunal to examine complaints and hear proceedings under section 7 of
the Human Rights Act 1998. (see Commissioners
and Tribunal [External website] for more
information on these bodies)
