Clause 186 - Exercise of powers by authorised person
Enterprise Bill
6:00 pm
Miss Melanie Johnson (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry; Welwyn Hatfield, Labour)
They would be any institution that can provide expertise under an arrangement with the OFT under the powers. However, I expect that it would often be public sector organisations that would have that expertise.
The clause also allows the OFT to involve officers from the Serious Fraud Office who could aid an investigation. An important safeguard in the clause is that no person is bound to comply unless the authorised person, whoever he or she may be, can produce evidence of his or her authority. In fact, the OFT has said that it would always expect such persons to be from public bodies.