(1)The operations of the Intelligence Service shall continue to be under the control of a Chief of that Service appointed by the Secretary of State.
(2)The Chief of the Intelligence Service shall be responsible for the efficiency of that Service and it shall be his duty to ensure—
(a)that there are arrangements for securing that no information is obtained by the Intelligence Service except so far as necessary for the proper discharge of its functions and that no information is disclosed by it except so far as necessary—
(i)for that purpose;
(ii)in the interests of national security;
(iii)for the purpose of the prevention or detection of serious crime; or
(iv)for the purpose of any criminal proceedings; and
(b)that the Intelligence Service does not take any action to further the interests of any United Kingdom political party.
(3)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2)(a) above, the disclosure of information shall be regarded as necessary for the proper discharge of the functions of the Intelligence Service if it consists of—
(a)the disclosure of records subject to and in accordance with the M1Public Records Act 1958; or
(b)the disclosure, subject to and in accordance with arrangements approved by the Secretary of State, of information to the Comptroller and Auditor General for the purposes of his functions.
(4)The Chief of the Intelligence Service shall make an annual report on the work of the Intelligence Service to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State and may at any time report to either of them on any matter relating to its work.