The RSPCA stands accused of being given greater access to the Police National Computer (PNC) than even government organisations – meaning it can look up an individual’s full criminal record – sparking claims that it is operating above the law.
The claims, made by The Register, mean civilians who work for the charity can access criminal records and carry out vehicle checks by making requests to the Association of Chief Police Officers Criminal Records Office (ACRO), which charges the charity for the information.
Police information may only be disclosed to “non statutory bodies” under strict criteria; blanket disclosures are illegal. When schools and other employers want to use the Disclosure & Barring Service (previously the CBR), checks they can take anything up to six weeks to complete, yet the RSPCA appears to have much quicker access.
The RSPCA has been under fire recently after a group of Conservative MPs claimed many of its prosecutions were politically motivated. It followed action against the Heythrop Hunt, the first successful prosecution of a hunt brought in the UK, as well as a letter leaked to the Daily Telegraph.
Although the charity does not have special powers, it does have a large cash haul to bring private prosecutions against alleged offenders.
The anti-cruelty organisation agrees to only request information about people it is actively investigating; to treat the data as restricted; and to handle it according to government guidelines. But, according to The Register, the charity has never been audited by ACRO to establish whether it is following these obligations. Meanwhile the Information Commissioner has never been challenged on the legality of the arrangement.
