Authorising crime: the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Act 2021

Abstract

The enactment of the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Act 2021 pre-empted the outcome of the appeal against the decision of the Investigatory Powers Tribunal in the so-called 'third direction' case. This legislation article considers the background to the statute in the form both of the (absence of a) legal regime governing informant participation in criminality as revealed by reviews of events within the Northern Irish Troubles and the recent litigation. It analyses the key legal issues raised by the Act and locates it within the modern project of rationalising the law related to national security.