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Official Secrets Act 1989

Current text a fecha 2002-10-01

Security and intelligence

1

is guilty of an offence if without lawful authority he discloses any information, document or other article relating to security or intelligence which is or has been in his possession by virtue of his position as a member of any of those services or in the course of his work while the notification is or was in force.

Defence

2

International relations

3

being information or a document or article which is or has been in his possession by virtue of his position as a Crown servant or government contractor.

may be sufficient to establish for the purposes of subsection (2)(b) above that the information, document or article is such that its unauthorised disclosure would be likely to have any of the effects there mentioned.

Crime and special investigation powers

4

Information resulting from unauthorised disclosures or entrusted in confidence

5

and the question whether a disclosure is damaging shall be determined for the purposes of this subsection as it would be in relation to a disclosure of that information, document or article by a Crown servant in contravention of section 1(3), 2(1) or 3(1) above.

unless that disclosure was by a British citizen or took place in the United Kingdom, in any of the Channel Islands or in the Isle of Man or a colony.

and information or a document or article is protected against disclosure by sections 1 to 3 above if it falls within paragraph (a) above.

Information entrusted in confidence to other States or international organisations

6

has come into a person’s possession as a result of having been disclosed (whether to him or another) without the authority of that State or organisation or, in the case of an organisation, of a member of it; and

Authorised disclosures

7

is made with lawful authority if, and only if, it is made in accordance with his official duty.

Safeguarding of information

8

or if he fails to take such care to prevent the unauthorised disclosure of the document or article as a person in his position may reasonably be expected to take.

Prosecutions

9

Penalties

10

Arrest, search and trial

11

shall apply to section 9(1) of the said Act of 1911 as extended by this subsection as they apply to that section as originally enacted.

“Crown servant” and “government contractor”

12

shall not be a government contractor for the purposes of this Act.

Other interpretation provisions

13

Orders

14

Acts done abroad and extent

15

shall, if it would be an offence by that person under any provision of this Act other than section 8(1), (4) or (5) when done by him in the United Kingdom, be an offence under that provision.

Short title, citation, consequential amendments, repeals, revocation and commencement

16

SCHEDULE 1

1

In each of the following provisions—

for the words “the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1939” there shall be substituted the words “ the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1989 ”.

2

In section 22(6) of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1978 for the words “the Official Secrets Acts 1911 and 1920” there shall be substituted the words “the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1989”.

3

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4

Any provision in a public service pension scheme (within the meaning of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 or the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993 which has effect in relation to conviction of an offence under the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1939 shall be construed as if the reference to such an offence included a reference to an offence under this Act.

SCHEDULE 2

Security and intelligence.

Editorial notes

[^c806761]: Act extended with modifications (30.06.1992) by S.I. 1992/1301, art.2.

[^c806762]: Act extended (1.12.1998) by 1998 c. 38, s. 53(4) (with ss. 139(2), 143(2)); S.I. 1998/2789, art. 2 Act extended (1.12.1998) by 1998 c. 38, s. 90(7) (with ss. 139(2), 143(2)); S.I. 1998/2789, art. 2 Act extended (1.12.1998) by 1998 c. 38, s. 92(7) (with ss. 139(2), 143(2)); S.I. 1998/2789, art. 2

[^c806763]: Act extended (1.2.1999) by 1998 c. 38, s. 111, Sch. 9 Pt. I para. 2(3) (with ss. 138(2), 143(2)); S.I. 1999/118, art. 2. Act extended (1.7.999) by 1993 c. 46, Sch. 1A para. 2(2) (as inserted (1.7.1999) by 1998 c. 38, s. 112, Sch. 10 para. 17 (with ss. 138(2), 143(2))); S.I. 1999/1290, art. 4.

[^c806764]: Act extended (1.3.1999) by S.I. 1998/3162 (N.I. 21), art. 93(5); S.R. 1999/81, art. 3.

[^c806765]: Act: transfer of certain functions (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/672, art. 2, Sch. 1

[^c806771]: 1985 c. 56.

[^c806772]: Words in s. 4(3)(a) inserted (2.10.2000) by 2000 c. 23, s. 82(1), Sch. 4 para. 5 (with s. 82(3)); S.I. 2000/2543, art. 3

[^c806773]: 1989 c. 5.

[^c806774]: Words in s. 4(3)(b) inserted (15.12.1994) by 1994 c. 13, s. 11(2), Sch. 4 para. 4; S.I. 1994/2734, art. 2

[^c806775]: 1911 c. 28.

[^c806776]: S. 7(5): transfer of certain functions (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1750, arts. 1(2),2, Sch. 1 (with art. 7); S.I. 1998/3178, art. 2(1)

[^c806777]: S. 8(9): transfer of certain functions (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1750, arts. 1(1), 2, Sch. 1 (with art. 7); S.I. 1998/3178, art. 2(1)

[^c806784]: S. 11(1) repealed (1.10.2002) by 2002 c. 30, s. 107, Sch. 8; S.I. 2002/2306, art. 2(g)(iii)(b)

[^c806785]: S. 11(2) repealed by S.I. 1989/1341 (N.I. 12), art. 90(1)(2), Schs. 6, 7

[^c806786]: 1911 c. 28.

[^c806787]: S. 11(3A) inserted by S.I. 1989/1341 (N.I. 12), art. 90(1), Sch. 6 para. 18(b)

[^c806788]: 1920 c. 75.

[^c806825]: S. 12: transfer of certain functions (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1750, arts. 1(1), 2, Sch. (with art. 7); S.I. 1998/3178, art. 2(1)

[^c806826]: S. 12(1)(aa) inserted (6.5.1999) by 1998 c. 46, s. 125, Sch. 8 para. 26(2)

[^c806827]: S. 12(1)(b) repealed (2.12.1999) by 1998 c. 47, ss. 99, 100(2), Sch. 13 para. 9(2), Sch. 15 (with s. 95); S.I. 1999/3209, art. 2, Sch.

[^c806828]: 1973 c. 36.

[^c806829]: Words in s. 12(1)(d) substituted (1.4.1997) by 1996 c. 14, s. 131(1), Sch. 10 para. 22 (with s. 72(5)); S.I. 1997/305, art. 2

[^c806830]: Words in s. 12(1)(e) substituted (4.11.2001) by 2000 c. 32, s. 74, Sch. 6 para. 9; S.R. 2001/396, art. 2, Sch.

[^c806831]: Words in s. 12(1)(e) inserted (1.4.1998) by 1997 c. 50, s. 134(1), Sch. 9 para. 62; S.I. 1998/354, art. 2(2)(ay)

[^c806832]: Words in s. 12(2)(a) inserted (6.5.1999) by 1998 c. 46, s. 125, Sch. 8 para. 26(3)

[^c806833]: S. 12(2)(aa) inserted (1.4.1999) by 1998 c. 38, s. 125, Sch. 12 para. 30 (with ss. 138(2), 143(2)); S.I. 1999/782, art. 2.

[^c806834]: S. 12(4) inserted (6.5.1999) by 1998 c. 46, s. 125, Sch. 8 para. 26(4)

[^c806835]: S. 12(5) inserted (2.12.1999) by 1998 c. 47, s. 99, Sch. 13 para. 9(3) (with s. 95); S.I. 1999/3209, art. 2, Sch.

[^c806836]: S. 16(6) power of appointment conferred by s. 16(6) fully exercised: 1.3.1990 appointed day by S.I. 1990/199

[^c806892]: Sch. 1 para. 2 repealed (N.I.) by Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1991 (c. 24, SIF 39:1), s. 70(4), Sch. 8 Pt. I.

[^c806893]: 1978 c. 5.

[^c806895]: Sch. 1 para. 3 repealed (2.10.2000) by 2000 c. 23, s. 82(2), Sch. 5 (with s. 82(3)); S.I. 2000/2543, art. 3

[^c806868]: 1967 c. 13.

[^c806869]: Sch. 1 para. 1(b) repealed (N.I.) (16.7.1996) by S.I. 1996/1298 (N.I. 8), art. 21(2), Sch. 6

[^c806870]: Sch. 1 para. 1(c) repealed (N.I.) (16.7.1996) by S.I. 1996/1297 (N.I. 7), art. 23(2), Sch. 5

[^c806871]: Sch. 1 para. 1(d) repealed (7.2.1994) by 1993 c. 48, s. 188, Sch. 5 Pt. I (with s. 6(8)); S.I. 1994/86, art. 2

[^c806872]: 1974 c. 7.

[^c806873]: 1975 c. 30.

[^c806874]: Sch. 1 para. 1(g) repealed (N.I.) (7.2.1994) by 1993 c. 49, ss. 182, 186(2), Sch. 4 Pt. I; S.R. 1994/17, art. 2

[^c806875]: S.I. 1975/1503 (N.I. 15).

[^c806876]: Sch. 1 para. 1(h) repealed (5.2.1994) by 1993 c. 46, ss. 20(2), 22(4) Sch. 3 (with s. 3(4))..

[^c806877]: S.I. 1984/380

[^c806878]: S.R. 1985 No. 259.

[^c806896]: Words in Sch. 1 para. 4 substituted (7.2.1994) by 1993 c. 48, ss. 190, 193(2), Sch. 8 para.21 (with s. 6(8)); S.I. 1994/86, art. 2

[^c806897]: Words in Sch. 1 para. 4 substituted (N.I.) (7.2.1994) by 1993 c. 49, ss. 184, 186(2), Sch. 7 para.23; S.R. 1994/17, art. 2