EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979

Declaration of the Northern Territory Police

Under the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 (the Act), the power to intercept telecommunications under a warrant for the purposes of law enforcement is confined to the Australian Federal Police, the Australian Crime Commission or to an ‘eligible authority’ of a State or the Northern Territory in relation to which a declaration under subsection 34(1) is in force.  The eligible authorities specified in the Act are:

• the police services of each State and of the Northern Territory;
• in New South Wales - the Crime Commission, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, the Inspector of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, the Police Integrity Commission or the Inspector of the Police Integrity Commission;
• in Victoria - the Office of Police Integrity;
• in Queensland - the Crime and Misconduct Commission; and
• in Western Australia - the Corruption and Crime Commission or the Parliamentary Inspector of the Corruption and Crime Commission.

Subsection 34(1) gives the Attorney-General, as the Minister responsible for the administration of the Act, a discretion to declare an eligible authority of a State or of the Northern Territory to be an agency for the purposes of the Act.  Acquiring the status of an agency means that the eligible authority concerned may then apply for and execute telecommunications interception warrants in its own right.

A declaration may only be made under subsection 34(1) where the law of the relevant State or Territory makes satisfactory provision in relation to the matters enumerated in subsection 35(1) of the Act and the relevant State or Territory has entered into an agreement relating to costs arising from the issue of warrants to, and the execution of warrants issued to, the relevant eligible authority.

The Telecommunications (Interception) Northern Territory Act 2001 makes provision complying with the requirements of subsection 35(1) of the Act and the Northern Territory has entered into an agreement with the Commonwealth undertaking to pay the costs set out in subsection 35(2) as regards the Northern Territory Police.  Accordingly, the Attorney-General has executed an instrument declaring the Northern Territory Police to be an agency for the purposes of the Act.

The details of previous declarations under subsection 34(1) are as follows:

Victoria Police Service     28 October 1988

New South Wales Crime Commission   30 January 1989

New South Wales Police Service    30 January 1989

Independent Commission Against Corruption  6 June 1990

Police Force of South Australia    10 July 1991

Western Australia Police Service    15 July 1997

New South Wales Police Integrity Commission  14 July 1998

Western Australian Corruption and Crime Commission 29 March 2004

Tasmania Police Service      5 February 2005