PET is subject to control in respect of a number of issues by several authorities and bodies. Furthermore, through a regular internal audit of records PET itself seeks to ensure that the working methods and case handling comply fully with rules and regulations.

The following is a brief description of the individual control measures.

Control through the Minister of Justice
On behalf of the Government, the Minister of Justice supervises PET, and the Service is subject to the directions of the Minister of Justice. The Minister of Justice has laid down some general written directions for the activities of PET. Among other things these directions stipulate that the Director of PET is obliged to keep the Minister of Justice informed of general as well as specific issues of essential importance to the activities of the Service. Through regular briefings, the Minister is able to monitor the Service’s priorities and areas of activity.

Parliamentary control
The Danish Parliament, Folketinget, has the parliamentary control of PET through a special parliamentary committee set up under Act no 378 of 6 July 1988 with the role of “supervising the Danish Defence Intelligence Service (FE) and PET”.

This committee consists of five MPs who are appointed by the five major parties in Parliament. In accordance with the law, the committee must be informed of the general guidelines governing the activities of PET and must be kept informed of important matters of security or foreign political issues that are relevant to the activities of the intelligence services. According to legislation, when being briefed, the committee must pay attention to the special conditions applying to intelligence activities. The members of the committee are under a duty of confidentiality in respect of what they learn on the committee.

Judicial Control
In line with the rest of the police, PET must obtain a warrant in order to carry out a number of investigative measures (e.g. telephone interception). This action also serves as a means of control of the Service’s activities.

Records Control
PET’s registry and the handling of personal information are also subject to supervision. When a person or an organisation has become the subject of an investigation, this may result in an actual file being made, a so-called personal file and organisational file. Such files are subject to special checks by the Wamberg Committee (named after the Committee’s first chairman, A.M. Wamberg), which was set up by the government in 1964. The Committee consists of the chairman and three other members. Presently the members are: Mr Oluf Engell, lawyer (chairman), Ms Bente Flindt Sørensen, county governor, Mr H.C. Bjerg, former chief archivist of public records, and Mr Kurt Fromberg, former managing director of a publishing house. The Committee members must be considered apolitical and they are appointed because they enjoy general confidence and respect.

As mentioned, the Committee controls PET’s records and the dissemination of information and in this connection the committee must approve new files on Danes and foreign nationals resident in Denmark that the Service requests to be registered. The Committee meets 6-10 times a year at PET’s offices to review cases and decide whether the criteria for recording them have been met. Furthermore, the Committee also takes random samples of old files to establish whether the deadlines for deletion are being kept.

Danish legislation does not stipulate rules and regulations for the actual registrations of the Service. For several years, however, it has been established practice that an individual cannot be registered solely on account of legal political activity. The Wamberg Committee also discusses regularly the overall principles of registration with the Ministry of Justice. The personal and organisational files must be deleted when the files are no longer of current interest. A file must be deleted if - within a period of 10 years - no new data worthy of registration have been added to the case.

The National Audit Office of Denmark
PET’s expenditures – including salaries – are subject to the general audit of the police accounts as undertaken by the National Audit Office in co-operation with the Audit Section of the National Commissioner and the auditors of the Ministry of Justice.

A minor part of PET’s accounts, e.g. those regarding coverage of sources’ costs and expenses are, however, subject to a special audit procedure involving a more thorough audit of the expenses. This audit is carried out by a specially authorised employee of the National Audit Office, who is assisted by an auditor of the Ministry of Justice. The specially authorised employee reports to the Auditor General regarding the audit carried out. The reports to the National Audit Office are only made in classified format if exceptional circumstances make this necessary.