The National Security Act 2023 (Designated Bodies) Regulations 2026
Designated the IRGC, IMCR, and GRU Volunteer Corps as foreign power threat entities under national security law.
These Regulations designate three specific organizations as "designated bodies" under Part 1 of the National Security Act 2023, subjecting them to the legal framework regarding foreign power threat activity.
The order applies to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), and the Russian GRU Volunteer Corps.
By listing these entities in a new Schedule 6A of the Act, the Secretary of State triggers specific national security offences and investigative powers related to these groups throughout the United Kingdom.
Arguments For
The Secretary of State asserts that the designated bodies are, or have been, involved in foreign power threat activity as defined by section 33 of the National Security Act 2023.
The document states that the designations are necessary to protect the safety or interests of the United Kingdom.
Proponents argue that the inclusion of alternative names for the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right is necessary because the body has operated under multiple identities.
The instrument relies on powers granted by the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026, which amended the 2023 Act to allow for the designation of specific entities.
Arguments Against
Legal scholars may question the threshold of evidence used by the Secretary of State to determine involvement in "foreign power threat activity."
Civil liberties organizations have previously raised concerns that designations under national security legislation can have broad implications for freedom of association and expression without the same judicial oversight as criminal trials.
Affected parties or international observers might challenge the factual basis for linking these specific volunteer and state-affiliated groups to active threats against UK interests.
Human rights monitors may highlight that the lack of a full impact assessment leaves the potential consequences for affiliated individuals or non-governmental organizations unexamined.
Citation, commencement and extent
- -(1) These Regulations may be cited as the National Security Act 2023 (Designated Bodies) Regulations 2026.
- (2) These Regulations come into force on the day after the day on which they are made.
- (3) These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
This section establishes the official title of the regulations and sets the date they take legal effect as 17 July 2026.
It confirms that the designations apply uniformly across all jurisdictions within the United Kingdom.
Designated bodies
- -(1) For the purposes of Part 1 of the National Security Act 2023, the Secretary of State designates-
- (a) the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e Enghelab-e Eslami);
- (b) the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR) (Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyah), including the alternative names listed in paragraph (2);
- (c) the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Volunteer Corps (Glavnoye upravleniye General'nogo shtaba Vooruzhonnykh sil Rossiyskoy Federatsii Dobrovol'cheskii korpus) (GRU VC).
(2) The alternative names included in the designation in paragraph (1)(b) are-
- (a) the Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand;
- (b) the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Righteous.
(3) For the purpose of listing the bodies for the time being designated by virtue of paragraph (1), after Schedule 6 to the National Security Act 2023, insert Schedule 6A, as set out in the Schedule to these Regulations.
This section formally names the three organizations—the IRGC, the IMCR, and the GRU Volunteer Corps—as designated bodies under the Act.
It specifies synonymous titles for the IMCR to ensure the designation applies regardless of which name the group uses.
Additionally, it creates and populates a new permanent list (Schedule 6A) within the National Security Act 2023 to include these entities.
SCHEDULE
Regulation 2(3)
INSERTED SCHEDULE 6A TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY ACT 2023
'SCHEDULE 6A
DESIGNATED BODIES
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e Enghelab-e Eslami).
The Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR) (Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyah), including the following alternative names-
- (a) the Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand;
- (b) the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Righteous.
- The Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Volunteer Corps (Glavnoye upravleniye General'nogo shtaba Vooruzhonnykh sil Rossiyskoy Federatsii Dobrovol'cheskii korpus) (GRU VC).'
This schedule provides the exact text that is inserted into the National Security Act 2023.
It serves as the official statutory list of groups whose activities are classified as foreign power threat activities, enabling the application of relevant criminal offences and enforcement measures against those associated with them.
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