The Crime (Overseas Production Orders) Act 2019 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2019

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations are the first commencement regulations made under the Crime (Overseas Production Orders) Act 2019 (c. 5) (“the 2019 Act”).

Sections 17 to 21 (provisions dealing with the making of regulations, interpretation, extent, commencement and the short title) came into force on Royal Assent.

Regulation 2(1)(a) brings into force section 1(5) and (6). This will permit the Secretary of State to make regulations with UK-wide extent designating an international co-operation arrangement for the purposes of the 2019 Act. Although designation of an international co-operation arrangement under section 1(5) is a pre-condition for making an overseas production order under the 2019 Act, designation regulations made under that section would have no practical effect in relation to devolved matters in Northern Ireland until the remaining substantive provisions of the 2019 Act, listed in regulation 2(2), are brought into force for that jurisdiction for all remaining purposes. This is in recognition of the commitment made during the passage of the 2019 Act not to commence, for Northern Ireland, provisions of the Act within the Northern Ireland Assembly’s competence until a restored Northern Ireland Executive had been able to consider the matter further.

Regulation 2(1)(b), taken with regulation 2(3), brings into force the provisions of the 2019 Act necessary to enable applications for overseas production orders to be made by service police across the whole of the United Kingdom.

Regulation 2(1)(c) brings into force section 16. This ensures that the amendments made by section 16 of the 2019 Act to section 52 of the Investigatory Powers Act 2016 (c. 25) (interception in accordance with overseas requests) will have the same extent as that Act.

Regulation 2(2) brings into force, for England and Wales and Scotland, all other substantive provisions of the 2019 Act which relate to the process for applying for, making, and serving an overseas production order.