• Home /
• Statewatch Database /
• UK: No "tapping" of "subversives"

UK: No "tapping" of "subversives"

01 September 1992

Lord Justice Lloyd, the Commissioner appointed under the Interception of Communications Act, says in his latest annual report that no warrants were issued in 1991 to tap the phones of subversives. The "threat of subversion has steadily declined", he says, "in 1985 there were a number of warrants issued against individual subversives who were regarded as being a major threat to Parliamentary democracy. Last year there were only two. Now there are none".

Lloyd says that during six years as Commissioner he has not come across "a single warrants which could not be justified" under the 1985 Act. He also says that there is no basis for the 'speculation' of unauthorised tapping and widespread interception by GCHQ published in the Guardian and elsewhere (see Statewatch, vol 1 nos 3 & 4; vol 2 no 4)

The number of telephone tapping and mail-opening warrants issued during 1991 was 732 a rise of 217 on 1990. This rise Lloyd says is due to the efficiency of police and customs officers efficiency in targeting criminals because the warrants are only needed for a short period of time before arrests are made. The Tribunal, set up to investigate complaints from the public, received 58 applications from people who suspected they were wrongly being tapped. None of the 43 completed complaints were upheld.

Report of the Commissioner for 1991 Cm 1942 HMSO 2.90 1992.