The Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIP) Act provides the circumstances in which law enforcement agencies can demand communications data from ISPs. These are wide enough to cover not just issues of national security, but also the prevention or detection of crime or disorder, the protection of public health and safety and the assessment or collection of taxes.
Following the attacks of 11th September, the Government announced plans for an Anti-Terrorism Bill which implied that there would be an obligation on service providers to retain all communications data for a certain period.
Just two weeks ago, in response to fears raised by civil liberties campaigners, Home Secretary David Blunkett was quoted as saying that the proposed new powers were needed by law enforcement agencies “strictly in the case of a criminal investigation against suspected terrorists.”
However, according to The Guardian, the data retention proposal will be exploited for all the purposes listed in the RIP Act – i.e. minor crime, tax assessment etc. The Guardian reports that the new Bill is due to be considered by a House of Commons Select Committee tomorrow.