Cumberland Council updates policy around surveillance powers
Councillors have approved an updated policy relating to the use of covert surveillance powers across north and west Cumbria.
According to the report Cumberland Council has not used its covert surveillance powers over the past year.
It provided an update on surveillance activity carried out by the council over the past year and members of the council’s executive committee met at Cumbria House in Carlisle to approve the updated policy.
According to the report, the council rarely makes use of the powers available under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA).
It was recommended that the executive approved the updated policy in respect of how Cumberland Council will comply with RIPA and delegated authority to the chief legal and monitoring officer to make amendments to the policy where required because of changes in legislation.
The report states: "Cumberland Council will, on occasion, need to use covert surveillance in order to carry out its functions effectively.
"RIPA provides the framework under which authorised regulators are able to carry out surveillance activities and access communications data which would otherwise not be legal because of the impact on human rights.
"Examples of enforcement activities which may require the use of RIPA include trading standards enforcement activities against rogue traders and loan sharks, community safety, environmental enforcement, fraud investigations and child protection.
"RIPA applications must go through a prescribed process which involves authorisation by one of the specified authorising officers. The authorised RIPA application must then be presented to a magistrate for judicial approval."
The report states that there have been no RIPA authorisations applied for or granted since the date of the last report to the executive in September 2024.
It adds: "This is not unexpected and is in line with national trends. A log is maintained of when use of RIPA is considered, even if it is not pursued because the council has found a less intrusive method than surveillance.
"Guidance states that elected members of a local authority should review the authority’s use of RIPA and set the policy at least once a year.
"It is not proposed that any changes are made to the policy which was adopted in September 2024, save for the addition of named individuals who are responsible senior officers for the purposes of conducting surveillance which falls outside of the RIPA process and the redesignation of directors as authorising officers following the senior restructure in April 2025."