(a) the Commissioner (as well as the
regulatory authority) is to be a party to any proceedings in the Civil and
Administrative Tribunal for an administrative review of the decision of the
regulatory authority, and
(b) the Tribunal is to be provided with a copy of
the report of the Commissioner, and
(c) the Tribunal is not prevented from
determining whether the regulatory authority made the correct and preferable
decision regarding the application or the licence or security clearance
concerned merely because of the report.
(2) In determining an application for
an administrative review of any decision to refuse to grant a licence or
security clearance or to suspend or cancel a licence or security clearance
that was made on the ground of a report under section 13 made by the
Commissioner of Police, the Civil and Administrative Tribunal (and any Appeal
Panel of the Tribunal in determining any internal appeal against such a review
under the Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 )--
(a) is to ensure
that it does not, in the reasons for its decision or otherwise, disclose the
existence or content of any information identified in the Commissioner's
report under section 13 (5) as being from a criminal or security intelligence
report or other confidential criminal information without the approval of the
Commissioner, and
(b) in order to prevent the disclosure of any such report
or other criminal information, is to receive evidence and hear argument in the
absence of the public, the applicant for the administrative review, the
applicant's representative and any other interested party, unless the
Commissioner approves otherwise.
Note : Section 13 (6) of this Act provides
that the regulatory authority and the Commissioner are not, under this or any
other Act or law, required to give any reasons in connection with the refusal
to grant a licence or security clearance or the suspension or cancellation of
a licence or security clearance on the ground of a report under section 13 if
the giving of those reasons would disclose the existence or content of any
criminal or security intelligence report or other confidential criminal
information referred to in section 13 (5). Accordingly, Part 2 of Chapter 3 of
the Administrative Decisions Review Act 1997 does not apply to any decision
to refuse to grant a licence or security clearance based on such information
to the extent that it would require disclosure of the existence or content of
any criminal or security intelligence report or other confidential criminal
information.
(3) If the Tribunal considers that information identified in the
Commissioner's determination as being from a criminal or security intelligence
report or other confidential criminal information referred to in section 13
(5) has not been properly identified as such, the Tribunal must ask the
Commissioner whether the Commissioner wishes to withdraw the information from
consideration by the Tribunal in its determination of an application.
(4)
Information that is withdrawn by the Commissioner must not be--
(a) disclosed
to any person, or
(b) taken into consideration by the Tribunal in determining
an application.