K Dudakia

Email: [FOI #14970 email]

8 September 2009

Our Ref: ESM/gov 001-004

Your Ref:

Dear Sir

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

Thank you for your request for information under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, in relation to use of surveillance by the Council under the Regulations of Investigatory Powers Act (“RIPA”). I would respond to your requests as follows:

Request 1

How many Council employees have the power to authorise the use of RIPA, and what is their designated grade?

In response I can confirm that at the present time14 employees of Harrow Council are authorised officers under the Regulations of Investigatory Powers Act. These authorisations are subject to the approval of the Director of Legal & Governance Services and senior political approval. The grades of these employees are:

Request 2

How any times has RIPA powers been used in the last 5 years? On what dates were the request made and by whom?

In response I can confirm that the Council holds the information you have requested and attached to this letter is a register which contains details of the instances the Council has used the powers conferred on it under the Regulations of Investigatory Powers Act

Request 3

For what purposes was RIPA used, and what type of investigation was being undertaken? What was the motivation for using RIPA? What were the outcomes of the RIPA requests? Please provide details for the past 5 years.

In response, please refer to the register attached to this letter.

Request 4

Over the past 5 years, by each year, how many people have been prosecuted as a result of evidence gathered through the use of RIPA sanctioned investigations, and how many of these prosecutions have lead to convictions?

The Council's records show that there has been one prosecution.

Request 5

For all the above where possible please provide the ethnicity and gender of the people concerned who were under the RIPA sanctioned investigations.

In response, please refer to the attached register with regard to gender. However, with regard to ethnicity, the Council does not hold this requested information.

I trust this answers your enquiry, but should you have any queries regarding this information do not hesitate to come back to me for clarification or further explanation. If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, you should write to the Director of Legal & Governance Services P O Box 2, Civic Centre, Station Road Harrow HA1 2UH.

If you are not content with the outcome your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner (IC) for a decision. Generally, the IC cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the council. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.

Yours faithfully

Elaine McEachron

Assistant Lawyer - Corporate Governance

Tel: 020 8420 9414

Email: [email address]

Fax No: 020 8424 1557

gov 001-004/246792

Director of Legal & Governance Services Hugh Peart

Harrow Council, PO Box 2, Civic Centre, Station Road, Harrow HA1 2UH DX 30450 Harrow 3

web www.harrow.gov.uk

gov 001-004/246792

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