New South Wales Consolidated Regulations

WORKPLACE SURVEILLANCE REGULATION 2005 - REG 5

5 Records relating to covert surveillance authority

(1) For the purposes of section 33 of the Act, a Magistrate who receives an application for, or issues, a covert surveillance authority is to ensure that the Minister is supplied with written advice of the receipt or issue as soon as practicable after receiving the application or issuing the authority.

(2) Written advice supplied under subclause (1) is to contain only information that is required by the Minister for the purposes of a report under section 42 of the Act.

Note: Section 33 (2) of the Act provides that a Magistrate is to take all reasonable steps to preserve the confidentiality of information contained in records made under section 33 (1) of the Act. However, section 33 (2) of the Act does not prevent the Magistrate from supplying information to the Minister that is required for the purposes of an annual report under section 42 of the Act.
An annual report under section 42 of the Act:

(a) must include details of the number of covert surveillance authorities sought, and the number of such authorities issued (together with a break down of the kinds of surveillance to which those issued authorities related), during the year to which the report relates, and

(b) may report on such other matters relating to covert surveillance authorities and the use of covert surveillance as the Minister considers appropriate.