Commentary on Sections Part 1: Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Chapter 4: Information about Banking Transactions Section 43: Information about a person’s bank account
102.This section makes provision for the UK to request assistance from other participating countries in obtaining details of any accounts held by a person subject to an investigation into serious criminal conduct in accordance with Article 1 of the 2001 Protocol. Whilst the general provisions of section 7 of this Act are relevant, special requirements apply to requests for information on bank accounts. An application may be made to a judicial authority (as defined in subsection (2)) to make a request for assistance under this section where a person is subject to an investigation in the UK, the person holds (or may hold) a bank account in a participating country, and the information is likely to be of substantial value to the investigation. A prosecuting authority which has been designated by order made by the Secretary of State may itself make a request for assistance under this section if the conditions specified in subsection (3) are satisfied - (in Scotland, the Lord Advocate or a procurator fiscal may likewise request assistance). Subsection (5) sets out the types of information which may be requested under this section, and subsection (6) sets out what a request for assistance must contain.