Part 5: Miscellaneous Chapter 2: Provision of investigative assistance to overseas regulators Section 322: Authorisation of the provision of investigative assistance
The provision of investigative assistance by R is subject to authorisation by the Secretary of State unless it is provided under or in accordance with a qualifying cooperation arrangement - see section 319, subsection (1), paragraph (c). This section sets out how the Secretary of State authorises R to provide assistance to O.
	Subsection (2) provides that the Secretary of State can authorise individual requests or give a general authorisation for requests of a particular description by, for example, granting a general authorisation for a UK authority to carry out any request received from a specific overseas regulator in respect of a particular activity (such as gathering information relevant to a merger review) under the terms of a specific regulator-to-regulator international cooperation agreement. A general authorisation can be withdrawn at any time (subsection (3)). The Secretary of State must publish the giving and the withdrawal of any general authorisation (subsection (4)).
	Subsection (5) outlines the factors to which the Secretary of State must have regard when considering whether to approve the provision of investigative assistance. The Secretary of State must have regard to whether the request is made in accordance with any arrangements or agreements to which the UK is a party (whether legally binding or non-legally binding), whether it would be more appropriate for R to carry out an investigation (under one of the enactments listed in the table in section 319, subsection (2)) solely for its own purposes or that action should be taken in relation to the subject matter of the request by another UK body or by a body in a country or territory other than the requesting regulator’s country or territory; or whether any assistance which R provides would be contrary to the public interest.
	Subsection (6) details that the Secretary of State may approve R’s provision of assistance to O but impose conditions on the assistance which R provides. Examples of possible conditions are set out in subsection (7) and enable the Secretary of State to ensure that any assistance provided is appropriate.