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European Union (Future Relationship) Act 2020

Contents

Schedule 3: Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters

  1. Paragraph 1 of the Schedule clarifies that references to "the 2003 Act" in this Schedule are references to the Crime (International Cooperation) Act 2003.
  2. Paragraph 2 reverses changes made to the 2003 Act by the Law Enforcement and Security (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 ("the Regulations"). These changes would, if they took effect, deprive UK authorities of the ability to provide assistance under the Agreement.
    1. The provisions reinserted by sub-paragraph (2)(a) and (b) omit paragraphs from the Regulations which would have removed powers to:
      1. administer service of process requests relating to administrative and clemency proceedings;
      2. make, send and vary freezing orders;
      3. administer requests seeking freezing of evidence; and
      4. administer requests relating to banking transactions.
    2. Sub-paragraph (3), as a consequence of the amendments above, removes changes which would otherwise alter powers of seizure available to the police under the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 and implement savings provisions to manage the amendments removed by sub-paragraph (2).
    3. Sub-paragraphs (4)-(6) make technical amendments to the way that the Regulations would have amended the designation of certain countries under the 2003 Act. In particular, Iceland, Japan and Switzerland will cease to be participating countries at the end of the Transition Period for the purposes of sections 32, 35, 37, 40 and 43 - 45 of the 2003 Act. Switzerland will also cease to be a participating country for the purposes of sections 4 and 4B of that Act. This is consequential upon the UK no longer being part of existing EU agreements with those countries at the end of the Transition Period. There is also a savings provision for existing requests from countries which will no longer be participating countries to ensure in-flight cases received before the end of the Transition Period can be honoured.
  3. Paragraph 3 makes changes in respect of Part 4 of the 2003 Act. Sub-paragraphs (2)-(4) widen the scope of "customer information" as defined in sections 32 and 37 of the Crime (International Cooperation) Act 2003 to include safe deposit box information in England, Wales and Scotland respectively for each section.
  4. Paragraph 4 widens the scope of "customer information" as defined in article 57 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (External Investigations) Order 2013 (the "2013 Order") to include safe deposit box information.
  5. Paragraph 5 widens the scope of "customer information" as defined in article 23 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (External Investigations) Order 2015 to include safe deposit boxes.
  6. Paragraph 6 ensures that the offence of disclosure and the practical arrangements contained in section 42 of the Crime (International Cooperation) Act 2003 apply where a request is received by the Secretary of State or Lord Advocate under section 13 of that Act in any circumstance.
  7. Paragraph 7 replaces references to "the Mutual Legal Assistance Convention" with references to the "European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters" (the Council of Europe framework which the Agreement supplements).

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