On the 1st November 2012, Governing Council members Ian Withers and Stuart Withers attended the SIA Seminar in London.
There was very little content in respect of the Investigation Sector, however the SIA Chairman Baroness Ruth Henig did cover the Sector in her presentation, in short as follows:
- The regulation of the Investigators will not be studied until the Leveson report is published and any recommendations will need to be taken into account along with those from the Parliamentary (Keith Vaz) Recommendations.
- The thinking is that Companies rather than individuals will be licensed, this however will require a primary legislation (new Act) from Parliament, unlikely prior to 2014/15.
- The basic criteria for a licence is intended to remain, ID, competence and criminal check
Users of Professional Investigative Services including members of the public, legal profession, business and corporate clients, are able to select a credible Professional Investigator who is recognized as a “professional” and as such is a member of an established and approved professional association such as The World Association of Professional Investigators (WAPI).