Police Act 1997

34 Inquiries

(1) The Secretary of State may cause an inquiry to be held by a person appointed by him into any matter connected with NCIS.

(2) An inquiry under this section shall be held in public or in private as the Secretary of State may direct.

(3) For the purposes of an inquiry under this section, the person appointed to hold the inquiry may by summons require any person to attend, at a time and place stated in the summons, to give evidence or to produce any documents in his custody or under his control which relate to any matter in question at the inquiry, and may take evidence on oath, and for that purpose administer oaths.

(4) No person shall be required, in obedience to a summons under subsection (3), to attend to give evidence or to produce any documents, unless the necessary expenses of his attendance are paid or tendered to him.

(5) Nothing in subsection (3) shall empower a person holding an inquiry to require the production of the title, or of any instrument relating to the title, of any land not being the property of the NCIS Service Authority.

(6) Every person who refuses or deliberately fails to attend in obedience to a summons issued under this section, or to give evidence, or who deliberately alters, suppresses, conceals, destroys, or refuses to produce any book or other document which he is required or is liable to be required to produce for the purposes of this section, shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both.

(7) Where the report of the person holding an inquiry under this section is not published, a summary of his findings and conclusions shall be made known by the Secretary of State so far as appears to him consistent with the public interest.

(8) The Secretary of State may direct that the whole or part of the costs (or, in relation to any inquiry held in Scotland, the expenses) incurred by any person for the purposes of an inquiry held under this section shall be defrayed out of the NCIS service fund; and any costs (or expenses) payable under this section shall be subject to taxation in such manner as the Secretary of State may direct.