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Intelligence and Security Committee

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
AbbreviationISC
Formation1994
PurposeStatutory Committee of Parliament responsible for oversight of the UK intelligence community
Chair
Julian Lewis
Parent organisation
UK Parliament
Websiteisc.independent.gov.uk
Formerly called
Intelligence and Security Committee

The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament (ISC) is a group in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that is responsible for making sure that what the UK intelligence community does is allowed or okay.[1][2]

The Committee was created in 1994[3] by the Intelligence Services Act 1994, and they were given more power by the Justice and Security Act 2013.[1]

Structure

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The ISC is not like other committees in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, being a statutory committee instead of a more common select committee. It was originally made under the Intelligence Services Act 1994.[4] The committee would later have what it does changed, and what it can do expanded by the Justice and Security Act 2013.

How independent it is has been, in the past, questioned by journalists and interest groups but the ISC says it is independent because it is made of MPs and peers from different parties and runs in a neutral manner.[5] The ISC got stronger power under the Justice and Security Act 2013 which also made it so that the Prime Minister didn't decide who was in the group anymore.[6]

References

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  1. 1.0 1.1 "The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament". Isc.independent.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 December 2010. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
  2. "Justice and Security Act 2013" (PDF). Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
  3. "Where is the Intelligence and Security Committee and why does its absence matter?". HansardSociety.org. 9 June 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020. At nearly six months, the time taken to appoint the ISC on this occasion has now exceeded that taken to appoint the Committee after every previous general election since the Committee was established in 1994.
  4. "Section 10 - The Intelligence and Security Committee - Intelligence Services Act 1994". OPSI.
  5. "UK spy watchdog 'taken in' by security agencies - MP". BBC. 27 February 2015. Retrieved 16 March 2015.
  6. "Institute for Government: The row over the Intelligence and Security Committee may require Parliament to review the Committee's role". 15 November 2019.