Sir Brian Leveson

Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office

IPCO provides independent oversight and authorisation of the use of investigatory powers by intelligence agencies, police forces and other public authorities.

IPCO’s purpose is to oversee how these powers are used, taking account of the public interest and ensuring that investigations are conducted in accordance with the law.

Sir Brian Leveson replaced Sir Adrian Fulford as the Investigatory Powers Commissioner on 21 October 2019. Before taking up this role, Sir Brian was President of the Queen’s Bench Division and Head of Criminal Justice for England and Wales.


  • Who we are

    Overseen by the Investigatory Powers Commissioner (IPC), IPCO currently employs approximately 50 people, including Inspectors, lawyers, communications experts and others. The team supports the IPC and the Judicial Commissioners in fulfilling their duties under the Act.

  • What we do

    IPCO provides independent oversight of the use of investigatory powers, as outlined in the Investigatory Powers Act 2016. This oversight includes the inspection and authorisation of the use of these powers by over 600 public authorities.

  • Investigatory Powers

    Investigatory powers allow certain organisations to gather information for investigative purposes, for example through surveillance techniques or the acquisition of communications data.


Recent Activity

  • Australia’s terror legislation watchdog consults UK partners
    20/11/2019

    Last week, Australia’s Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM), Dr James Renwick, visited London as part of his national security consultation. During his visit, Dr Renwick met with the UK’s Investigatory Powers Commissioner......
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  • Five Eyes oversight organisations meet in London
    24/10/2019

    Sir Adrian Fulford with Five Eyes Oversight delegates at their annual conference in London Last week the Five Eyes intelligence oversight organisations gathered to discuss ongoing cooperation and areas of interest. Each of the Five Eyes countries &nda......
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  • Compliance inspections of MI5 complete
    22/10/2019

    In the wake of IT compliance issues identified earlier in the year, the Investigatory Powers Commissioner (IPC) has now concluded a series of targeted inspections of MI5. The IPC asked a team of inspectors and technical experts to examine the mitigations......
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