The CHIS Bill: Enshrining Abuse in Law

Without warning, a new law is being rushed through parliament to allow police and other state agencies to self-authorise their agents to commit literally any crime. It would also prohibit civil claims by their victims.

The Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill would enshrine in law not only the right for spycops to commit the abuses that have caused so much public outrage, but much more besides.

Crimes would be permissable if they protect whatever is meant by ‘the economic wellbeing’ of the country. Authorisations would be given without limit or judicial oversight. The powers would extend well beyond the police and security services to include the likes of the Food Standards Agency, Competition & Markets Authority, and the Gambling Commission.

The pace of this law is breathtaking. It was published on 24th September, it had its second reading in the Commons on 5th October and will probably be in the House of Lords before the end of the month.

At the second reading, Labour and the SNP abstained, though about 20 Labour MPs rebelled to oppose it.

The third reading will be on Thursday 15th October, with amendments that would establish some safeguards to prohibit:

• Some serious serious crimes such as murder, torture and rape;
• Trade union infiltration and blacklisting;
• Agents having sexual relationships whilst in their undercover persona

Labour leader Keir Starmer is reported to be planning to instruct Labour MPs to abstain on the third reading, even if the changes being put forward by the opposition are not adopted.

What You Can Do

Before the third reading on Thursday, please email your MP and ask them to support the amendments and oppose the Bill.

Unite the Union has made an online tool that makes it quick and easy to send the email.

Joint Statement

The general secretaries of 14 trade unions, 20 Labour MPs and a number of campaigning organisations including the Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance, have signed a joint statement:

We the undersigned have grave concerns about the measures set out in the Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill as introduced to the Commons at second reading (5 October 2020).

As many will be aware from the circumstances leading up to the setting up of the Mitting (formerly Pitchford) Inquiry into undercover policing, there has been a documented history of state surveillance of lawful trade union activity and justice campaigns in recent years, including apparent links with the criminal blacklisting of trade union members. We are also alarmed by the conduct of undercover police in pursuing surveillance of legitimate civil society organisations including anti-racist organisations, family justice campaigns and environmental groups.

Whilst the government has assured us that the bill will not apply retrospectively, we remain concerned that passing legislation with undue haste and insufficient scrutiny in Committee – pre-empting the findings of the Mitting Inquiry – risks compromising and undermining legal proceedings through which victims of previous criminal conduct by CHIS operatives are seeking justice.

Aside from the timing of the new licensing of criminal conduct by CHIS operatives, our specific concerns about the bill as it stands include:

• The vague definition of “economic wellbeing” being susceptible to interpretations which would implicate aspects of legitimate trade union activity;
• The failure to expressly rule out the authorisation of murder, torture or sexual violence by a CHIS;
• The lack of any provision to compensate innocent victims of criminal conduct undertaken by a CHIS;
• The unnecessarily broad range of agencies able to authorise unlawful conduct;
• The reliance on the Human Rights Act as limiting the scope of what might be legally authorised, despite the government’s own previous reliance on a legal defence that the State cannot be held responsible under the terms of the European Convention on Human Rights for actions undertaken by individual agents, and;
• The lack of prior judicial authorisation or even concurrent judicial oversight.

In light of these concerns, we would ask the government to withdraw the bill to allow for due consideration of the evidence and findings of the Mitting Review, or at the very least to make substantial amendments to the Bill to meet the concerns outlined above.

If sufficient amendments to ensure proper safeguarding in the legislation are not secured, the bill will remain unfit for purpose and cannot be allowed to proceed.

We urge all those who share our concerns to use the tool at this link to email their MP today, to ask them to support the amendments submitted by the Labour frontbench, and to oppose the bill at third reading if the amendments are unsuccessful and the government refuses to withdraw the bill.

Signatories:

Len McCluskey, general secretary, Unite the Union

Matt Wrack, general secretary, Fire Brigades Union (FBU)

Sarah Woolley, general Secretary, Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union (BFAWU)

Dave Ward, general secretary, Communication Workers Union (CWU)

Manuel Cortes, general secretary, Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA)

Mick Whelan, general secretary, Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen (ASLEF)

Mick Cash, general secretary, Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT)

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary, National Education Union (NEU)

Jo Grady, general secretary, University and College Union (UCU)

Mark Serwotka, general secretary, Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS)

Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary, National Union of Journalists (NUJ)

Steve Gillan, general secretary, Prison Officers Association (POA)

Ian Lawrence, general secretary, NAPO

Bob Monks, general secretary, United Road Transport Union

Reprieve

Police Spies Out Of Lives

Momentum

Open Labour

Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance

Pat Finucane Centre

Privacy International

Committee for Administration of Justice (CAJ)

Rights and Security International

Undercover Research Group

Netpol

Blacklist Support Group

Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign

Justice 4 Grenfell

Public Interest Law Centre

Big Brother Watch

Jeremy Corbyn MP

John McDonnell MP

Diane Abbott MP

Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP

Ian Lavery MP

Jon Trickett MP

Richard Burgon MP

Kate Osborne MP

Ian Byrne MP

Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP

Claudia Webbe MP

Clive Lewis MP

Bethan Winter MP

Rebecca Long-Bailey MP

Mick Whitley MP

Ian Mearns MP

Grahame Morris MP

Apsana Begum MP

Paula Barker MP

Zarah Sultana MP

Michelle Gildernew MP

Órfhlaith Begley MP

Francie Molloy MP

Mickey Brady MP

Paul Maskey MP

Chris Hazzard MP

John Finucane MP

Baroness Shami Chakrabarti

Baroness Christine Blower

Baroness Pauline Bryan

Lord John Hendy QC

Suresh Grover, co-director, The Monitoring Group

Dorothea Jones, co-director, The Monitoring Group

Terry Renshaw

Kate Flannery

Chris Peace

Laura Pidcock