Written question asked by Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative) on Wednesday, 22 July 2026, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 5 August 2026. It was answered by Lord Lemos (Labour) on Monday, 3 August 2026 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Intelligence Services

Question: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the provisions in the Public Office (Accountability) Bill on the functions of the security services.

Answer

The Government has worked closely with the UK Intelligence Community and with the Intelligence and Security Committee to assess the impact of any measures on the functions of the intelligence and security services.

The Bill includes measures designed to ensure that sensitive information is handled securely and can be protected from inappropriate disclosure. This includes information related to the functions of the intelligence and security services.

As for all public authorities, there will be some limited costs for the intelligence and security services in preparing for the application of the duty and in adapting existing practice to meet its requirements. The Bill’s impact assessment sets out that the extent of ‘new’ costs in the support of these investigative processes is likely to be low.

The Government will continue to review the impact assessment of the Bill as the Bill is amended.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: HL2539
Session: 2026-27
Subjects: Intelligence services
Legislation: Public Office (Accountability) Bill 2024-26 to 2026-27
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk

Intelligence Services

Secondary information

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