Clause 32 - Customer information
Crime (International Co-operation) Bill [Lords]
9:10 am
Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath, Conservative)
I welcome you back to the Chair, Mr. Hurst. May I give a particularly warm welcome to the new Minister, without wishing to leave out the long-serving Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, who is sitting next to her? I have personal knowledge that the newly appointed Minister, whom I congratulate warmly, is tactful and diplomatic. I am sure that all Committee members will benefit from her wisdom. She could show that by accepting Opposition amendments Nos. 146, 147 and 87A. [Hon. Members: Oh.] Well, it is always worth trying, Mr. Hurst.
We are seeking, in three different ways, to introduce a reasonableness test. Amendment No. 146 would introduce the requirement of such a test on the Secretary of State. Although I am not casting aspersions on any particular Secretary of State, they sometimes behave unreasonably. Some might say that the present Home Secretary has been unreasonable about judges. No doubt that was one of the things that led to the chaos of the reshuffle that was and was not, and which abolished the Lord Chancellor and then did not. It would be helpful if there were a requirement in the Bill for the Secretary of State to act reasonably. It surely cannot be unreasonable for a reasonableness test to be introduced into this chapter.
Amendment No. 147 would introduce a different sort of reasonableness test. The financial institution that may be affected would need reasonable notice that an order had been made. Amendment No. 87A accompanies Nos. 146 and 147 and backs up the
requirement for the reasonableness, appropriateness and, in this instance, sufficiency, that should be included in the Bill. There is a need for a full explanation of the reasons for the application and for the Secretary of State to be satisfied that those reasons are sufficient to justify the order being made. In summary, the three amendments together will make clause 32 more reasonable and balanced.
Committee members will be aware, although perhaps the new Minister may not, that I was a banking lawyer before I entered the House of Commons. It is important to balance the needs of privacy in relation to customer information and those of the state. We will deal later with some of the more draconian measures that the Government are putting forward. The Minister will talk about the overriding need to tackle crime, which the Opposition Benches accept. However, a balance must be struck between the interests of financial institutions and their customers, the need for traditional confidentiality and privacy and the state's need to tackle crime. Our amendments will strike that balance more clearly and appropriately.