An important piece of legislation is The Official Secrets Act (1916) which controls information the government does not want released. It is comprised of three Sections - the first two are the only ones known outside of The Laundry and describe the rules and restrictions that Civil Servants operate under when dealing with secure information.
Section Three of the Act is unique in that it is classed as Secret itself by the preceding two Sections, and knowing about Section Three without having signed it is in fact a criminal offence[1]. Although not described in detail, it has many provisions for the kind of extra-legal, unbelievable work The Laundry does on a regular basis and protects them from prosecution under conventional law.
"Anything at all can go on behind the shroud of Section Three as if it simply hasn't happened. In American terms, it's a black operation."
References[]
- ↑ p13, The Atrocity Archives, Orbit, 2004