Labour MP Keith Vaz has called for a second Leveson Inquiry to look into the actions of private investigators working in the corporate sector.
A Serious Organised Crime Agency report from 2008 was published last week and, in the words of Vaz, it revealed that the use of Private Eyes "who have been engaging in criminality with impunity was shockingly rife".
Writing in the Mail on Sunday, Vaz – who is chair of the Home Affairs Select Committee – said: “The clients involved are so diverse that this controversy has the potential to become even more serious than the examples shown in the first Leveson inquiry.”
A report by SOCA which revealed the extent of outsourcing to hackers by blue-chip companies was leaked in June. After a formal request by the Home Affairs Select Committee, SOCA passed on a list to them revealing 102 companies and individuals which hired private investigators.
SOCA, however, has classified the information, which Vaz said has prevented its publication in full.
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