Police Act 1997

6 Appointment of Director General

(1) NCIS shall have a Director General appointed by the NCIS Service Authority on such terms and conditions as the Authority considers appropriate.

(2) The Director General shall be chosen by a panel of members of the Authority from a list of persons eligible for appointment which has been prepared by that panel and approved by the Secretary of State.

(3) A person shall be eligible for appointment as Director General for the purposes of subsection (2) if—

(a) he holds the rank of chief constable in a police force in Great Britain or in the Royal Ulster Constabulary,

(b) he is the Commissioner, an Assistant Commissioner or a Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis,

(c) he is the Commissioner of Police for the City of London, or

(d) he is, in accordance with regulations under section 50 of the [1996 c. 16.] Police Act 1996, section 26 of the [1967 c. 77.] Police (Scotland) Act 1967 or section 25 of the [1970 c. 9 (N.I.).] Police Act (Northern Ireland) 1970, a constable eligible for appointment to any of the ranks or posts mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c).

(4) The panel mentioned in subsection (2) shall be convened by the chairman of the NCIS Service Authority and shall consist only of members of that Authority appointed—

(a) by the Secretary of State (other than under paragraph 6, 7(f) or 8(1)(h) of Schedule 1), or

(b) by local authority members of police authorities for areas in England and Wales (as defined in paragraph 14 of that Schedule), members of police authorities for areas in Scotland or members of the Police Authority for Northern Ireland.

(5) The Director General shall, on appointment, be attested as a constable by making a declaration in the form set out in Schedule 4 to the Police Act 1996 before a justice of the peace appointed for an area in England and Wales.

(6) Without prejudice to any other enactment conferring powers on constables for particular purposes, the Director General shall have all the powers and privileges of a constable throughout England and Wales and the adjacent United Kingdom waters.

(7) The Director General shall hold the rank of chief constable.

(8) In subsection (6)—

• “powers” includes powers under any enactment, whenever passed or made;

• “United Kingdom waters” means the sea and other waters within the seaward limits of the territorial sea;

and that subsection, so far as it relates to powers under any enactment, makes them exercisable throughout the United Kingdom waters whether or not the enactment applies to those waters apart from this provision.