Legalize / United Kingdom / Public General Act

Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005

Type Public General Act

Publication 2005-04-07

State In force

Department Statute Law Database

Source legislation.gov.uk

Reform history JSON API

Part 1 — The Serious Organised Crime Agency

Chapter 1 — SOCA: establishment and activities

Establishment of SOCA

Proceedings under section 74: use of live link

1

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Functions

Delegation of power to designate

2

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Harassment intended to deter lawful activities

3

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Powers of Crown Court and Magistrates' Court to issue witness summons

4

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General powers

Harassment etc. of a person in his home

5

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Annual plans and reports

Annual plans

6

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Annual reports

7

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Central supervision and direction

General duty of Secretary of State and Scottish Ministers

8

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Strategic priorities

9

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Codes of practice

10

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Reports to Secretary of State

11

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Power to direct submission of action plan

12

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Revision of inadequate action plan

13

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Procedure for giving directions under section 12

14

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Reports relating to directions under section 12

15

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Inspections

16

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Financial provisions

Grants by Secretary of State

17

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Determinations relating to grants under section 17

18

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Charges by SOCA and other receipts

19

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Accounts

20

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Operational matters

Operational responsibility of Director General

21

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Activities in Scotland in relation to crime

22

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Mutual assistance between SOCA and law enforcement agencies: voluntary arrangements

23

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Mutual assistance between SOCA and law enforcement agencies: directed arrangements

24

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Directed arrangements: Scotland

25

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Use by SOCA of police premises etc.

26

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Regulations as to equipment

27

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Liability for unlawful conduct

Liability of SOCA for acts of seconded staff etc.

28

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Payment by SOCA of amounts in connection with unlawful conduct of employees etc.

29

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Application of sections 28 and 29 to members of joint investigation teams

30

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Liability of special police forces and law enforcement agencies for unlawful conduct of SOCA staff

31

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Use and disclosure of information

Use of information by SOCA

32

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Disclosure of information by SOCA

33

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Disclosure of information to SOCA

34

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Restrictions on further disclosure

35

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General duties of police etc.

General duty of police to pass information to SOCA

36

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General duty of police etc. to assist SOCA

37

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Prosecutions

Prosecution of offences investigated by SOCA

38

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Directions as to reference of cases and proceedings to appropriate prosecutor

39

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Functions of Director of Revenue and Customs Prosecutions as to persons arrested for designated offence

40

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Miscellaneous and supplementary

Directions

41

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Interpretation of Chapter 1

42

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Chapter 2 — SOCA: special powers of designated staff

Designations

Designation of SOCA staff as persons having powers of constable etc.

43

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Delegation of power to designate

44

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Modification or withdrawal of designations

45

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Powers exercisable

Person having powers of a constable

46

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Person having powers of constable: Scotland and Northern Ireland

47

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Person having customs powers

48

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Person having powers of an immigration officer

49

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Exercise of powers

Designations: supplementary

50

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Assaults, obstruction or deception in connection with designations

51

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Supplementary

Modification of enactments

52

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Employment provisions

53

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Interpretation of Chapter 2

54

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Chapter 3 — SOCA: Miscellaneous and supplementary

Complaints and misconduct

55

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Application of discrimination legislation

Application of discrimination legislation to SOCA seconded staff

56

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Joint investigation teams

Assaults or obstruction in connection with joint investigation teams

57

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Transfers

Transfers to SOCA

58

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Amendments

Minor and consequential amendments relating to SOCA

59

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Part 2 — Investigations, prosecutions, proceedings and proceeds of crime

Chapter 1 — Investigatory powers of DPP, etc.

Introductory

Investigatory powers of DPP etc.

60

(1) This Chapter confers powers on—

(a) the Director of Public Prosecutions,

(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(d) the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland,

in relation to the giving of disclosure notices in connection with the investigation of offences to which this Chapter applies or in connection with a terrorist investigation.

(2) The Director of Public Prosecutions may, to such extent as he may determine, delegate the exercise of his powers under this Chapter to a Crown prosecutor.

(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(4) The Lord Advocate may, to such extent as he may determine, delegate the exercise of his powers under this Chapter to a procurator fiscal.

(4A) The Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland may, to such extent as he may determine, delegate the exercise of his powers under this Chapter to a Public Prosecutor.

(5) In this Chapter “the Investigating Authority” means—

(a) the Director of Public Prosecutions,

(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(d) the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.

(6) But, in circumstances where the powers of any of those persons are exercisable by any other person by virtue of subsection (2), ... (4) or (4A), references to “the Investigating Authority” accordingly include any such other person.

(7) In this Chapter “terrorist investigation” means an investigation of—

(a) the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism,

(b) any act or omission which appears to have been for the purposes of terrorism and which consists in or involves the commission, preparation or instigation of an offence, or

(c) the commission, preparation or instigation of an offence under the Terrorism Act 2000 (c. 11) or under Part 1 of the Terrorism Act 2006 other than an offence under section 1 or 2 of that Act.

Offences to which this Chapter applies

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(1) This Chapter applies to the following offences—

(a) any offence listed in Schedule 2 to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (c. 29) (lifestyle offences: England and Wales);

(b) any offence listed in Schedule 4 to that Act (lifestyle offences: Scotland);

(ba) any offence listed in Schedule 5 to that Act (lifestyle offences: Northern Ireland);

(c) any offence under sections 15 to 18 of the Terrorism Act 2000 (c. 11) (offences relating to fund-raising, money laundering etc.);

(d) any offence under section 170 of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (c. 2) (fraudulent evasion of duty) or section 72 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 (c. 23) (offences relating to VAT) which is a qualifying offence;

(e) any offence under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 (c. 60) or section 17 of the Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 (false accounting), or any offence at common law of cheating in relation to the public revenue, which is a qualifying offence;

(f) any offence under section 1 of the Criminal Attempts Act 1981 (c. 47) or Article 3 of the Criminal Attempts and Conspiracy (Northern Ireland) Order 1983, or in Scotland at common law, of attempting to commit any offence in paragraph (c) or any offence in paragraph (d) or (e) which is a qualifying offence;

(g) any offence under section 1 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 (c. 45) or Article 9 of the Criminal Attempts and Conspiracy (Northern Ireland) Order 1983, or in Scotland at common law, of conspiracy to commit any offence in paragraph (c) or any offence in paragraph (d) or (e) which is a qualifying offence;

(h) any offence under the Bribery Act 2010.

(i) any offence under section 45 or 46 of the Criminal Finances Act 2017 (failure to prevent the facilitation of UK tax evasion offences or foreign tax evasion offences).

(j) any offence under regulations under section 1 of the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (sanctions regulations) which is specified by those regulations by virtue of section 17(8) of that Act.

(k) an offence under section 199 of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (failure to prevent fraud offences).

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) an offence in paragraph (d) or (e) of that subsection is a qualifying offence if the Investigating Authority certifies that in his opinion—

(a) in the case of an offence in paragraph (d) or an offence of cheating the public revenue, the offence involved or would have involved a loss, or potential loss, to the public revenue of an amount not less than £5,000;

(b) in the case of an offence under section 17 of the Theft Act 1968 (c. 60) or section 17 of the Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969, the offence involved or would have involved a loss or gain, or potential loss or gain, of an amount not less than £5,000.

(3) A document purporting to be a certificate under subsection (2) is to be received in evidence and treated as such a certificate unless the contrary is proved.

(4) The Secretary of State may by order—

(a) amend subsection (1), in its application to England and Wales or Northern Ireland, so as to remove an offence from it or add an offence to it;

(b) amend subsection (2), in its application to England and Wales or Northern Ireland, so as to—

(i) take account of any amendment made by virtue of paragraph (a) above, or

(ii) vary the sums for the time being specified in subsection (2)(a) and (b).

(5) The Scottish Ministers may by order—

(a) amend subsection (1), in its application to Scotland, so as to remove an offence from it or add an offence to it;

(b) amend subsection (2), in its application to Scotland, so as to—

(i) take account of any amendment made by virtue of paragraph (a) above, or

(ii) vary the sums for the time being specified in subsection (2)(a) and (b).

Disclosure notices

62

(1) If it appears to the Investigating Authority—

(a) that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that an offence to which this Chapter applies has been committed,

(b) that any person has information (whether or not contained in a document) which relates to a matter relevant to the investigation of that offence, and

(c) that there are reasonable grounds for believing that information which may be provided by that person in compliance with a disclosure notice is likely to be of substantial value (whether or not by itself) to that investigation,

he may give, or authorise an appropriate person to give, a disclosure notice to that person.

(1A) If it appears to the Investigating Authority—

(a) that any person has information (whether or not contained in a document) which relates to a matter relevant to a terrorist investigation, and

(b) that there are reasonable grounds for believing that information which may be provided by that person in compliance with a disclosure notice is likely to be of substantial value (whether or not by itself) to that investigation,

he may give, or authorise an appropriate person to give, a disclosure notice to that person.

(2) In this Chapter “appropriate person” means—

(a) a constable,

(b) a National Crime Agency officer who is for the time being designated under section 9 or 10 of the Crime and Courts Act 2013, or

But in the application of this Chapter to Northern Ireland, this subsection has effect as if paragraph (b) was omitted.

(3) In this Chapter “disclosure notice” means a notice in writing requiring the person to whom it is given to do all or any of the following things in accordance with the specified requirements, namely—

(a) answer questions with respect to any matter relevant to the investigation;

(b) provide information with respect to any such matter as is specified in the notice;

(c) produce such documents, or documents of such descriptions, relevant to the investigation as are specified in the notice.

(4) In subsection (3) “the specified requirements” means such requirements specified in the disclosure notice as relate to—

(a) the time at or by which,

(b) the place at which, or

the person to whom the notice is given is to do any of the things mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c) of that subsection; and those requirements may include a requirement to do any of those things at once.

(5) A disclosure notice must be signed or counter-signed by the Investigating Authority.

(6) This section has effect subject to section 64 (restrictions on requiring information etc.).

Production of documents

63

(1) This section applies where a disclosure notice has been given under section 62.

(2) An authorised person may—

(a) take copies of or extracts from any documents produced in compliance with the notice, and

(b) require the person producing them to provide an explanation of any of them.

(3) Documents so produced may be retained for so long as the Investigating Authority considers that it is necessary to retain them (rather than copies of them) in connection with the investigation for the purposes of which the disclosure notice was given.

(4) If the Investigating Authority has reasonable grounds for believing—

(a) that any such documents may have to be produced for the purposes of any legal proceedings, and

(b) that they might otherwise be unavailable for those purposes,

they may be retained until the proceedings are concluded.

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