RIPA & IOCA 1985

[Q G Campbell]

The point has been made that Explanatory Notes to Acts of Parliament are
not worth the paper they are written on for any legal purposes.

This is well illustrated in the case of RIPA. The Explanatory Notes say
that "This [RIP] Act repeals the 1985 [IOC] Act..."  but this is
directly contradicted by the Act itself in Schedule 5 which repeals
most, but *not* all, of IOCA 1985.

In addition we have at least two levels of seemingly incorrect "repeal
recursion" in operation now:=20
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o RIPA makes reference to "repealed" IOCA 1985.
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and

o The remaining sections of IOCA 1985 [s.11(1)&(2), s.12 and Schedule 2
  are left] in turn make reference to the repealed s.2 of IOCA!=20
 =20
I was struck by the incorrect statement in the RIPA Explanatory Notes
and curious as to what was special about the remaining, unrepealed,
parts of IOCA 1985.

I contacted Roland in mid-January to ask him and he raised it at one of
his meetings with Home Office officials who promised to give a written
response because it was apparently "too complex to describe verbally".=20

I assume that Roland is still waiting to hear from the Home Office.

  =20
Quentin
--
PHONE: +44 191 222 8209    Computing Service, University of Newcastle
FAX:   +44 191 222 8765    Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom, NE1 7RU.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Any opinions expressed above are mine. The University can get its own."
    =20

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Q G Campbell [mailto:Q.G.Campbell@newcastle.ac.uk]
> Sent: 26 February 2001 12:10
> To: ukcrypto@chiark.greenend.org.uk
> Subject: RE: RIPA
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> I assumed that the references to IOCA 1985 in s.17 of RIPA were simply
> there to deal with any outstanding IOCA warrants that were=20
> current when
> RIPA came into force.=20
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>   =20
> Quentin
> --
> PHONE: +44 191 222 8209    Computing Service, University of Newcastle
> FAX:   +44 191 222 8765    Newcastle upon Tyne, United=20
> Kingdom, NE1 7RU.
> --------------------------------------------------------------
> ----------
> "Any opinions expressed above are mine. The University can=20
> get its own."
>     =20
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> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Roland Perry [mailto:roland@linx.net]
> > Sent: 25 February 2001 17:47
> > To: ukcrypto@chiark.greenend.org.uk
> > Subject: Re: RIPA
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> >=20
> > In article <3.0.2.32.20010225165839.00731dc8@10.0.0.254>, Donald
> > ramsbottom <donald@ramsbottom.co.uk> writes
> > >Well S17 (2) (a) refres to IOCA S:1, which according to the=20
> > RIPA schedule
> > >was repealed I am not sure what the position is referring to=20
> > a repealed
> > >Act, is it repealed or not?
> >=20
> > So it is. The murk deepens...
> > --=20
> >              Roland Perry | tel: +44 1733 207705 | roland@linx.org
> > Director of Public Policy | fax: +44 1733 207729 |=20
http://www.linx.net
>  London Internet Exchange | mbl: +44 7050 604080 |      =20
> /contact/roland
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