New rules for MI5 and police to authorise crimes
Undercover informants working for the police and MI5 are going to be explicitly permitted for the first time under British law to commit crimes.
The unprecedented legislation to authorise and oversee crimes comes after years of unclear rules over when these agents can break the law.
The law will not specify exactly which crimes can be committed.
And critics are urging MPs to amend the proposed law to rule out murder and serious violence.
The highly unusual decision to create a law that sanctions crime comes after a legal battle to force MI5 and the government to reveal secret rules governing when an informant can break the law.
Informants - also known as agents - are recruited to gather intelligence on targets, including terrorist organisations, major drugs gangs and child abuse networks.
These agents are often already involved in the networks being targeted and need to maintain a cover in order to gather critical evidence for investigators.
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