Royal Commission on Criminal Justice

Debate between Lord Keen of Elie and Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate

Wednesday 3rd June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Keen of Elie]

The manifesto commitment was that the royal commission would address prosecution, trial, sentence and parole, and I have no doubt that within that it will give consideration to the length of sentences and the need for rehabilitation.

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

While I understand that my noble and learned friend cannot talk directly about terms of reference for the commission so far, the original idea was that it would look at the efficiency and effectiveness of the criminal justice process. Does he agree that to be effective in the eyes of the public, it must also be local? The closure of many magistrates’ courts has caused considerable problems in local access to the criminal justice service. Can he ensure that the terms of reference look again at how ordinary members of the public who are involved can get access to the system?

Prisons

Debate between Lord Keen of Elie and Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate

Thursday 22nd February 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Keen of Elie]

My Lords, any death in custody is a tragedy. What I can say is that, in the period of 12 months to September 2017, the number of self-inflicted deaths in the prison system dropped by about 30%.

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

My Lords, speaking as a former Mental Health Act commissioner, I am deeply disturbed by the high incidence of mental illness in our prison population. I would be very grateful if my noble and learned friend could inform us of how much attention has been given to this by the Government, working not only through his department but with other agencies to address what I believe to be quite a serious issue.

[Lord Keen of Elie]

My noble friend is quite right to highlight such a serious issue. There is a very large proportion of prisoners with mental health issues within the system. We are working with the Department of Health and NHS England to develop a new health and justice protocol that should ensure timely access to mental health and substance misuse services. In addition, we have been providing grant funding of £500,000 a year to the Samaritans for the last two years in order that they can support their Listener Scheme for those who require it.

Asylum Seekers: Legal Advice

Debate between Lord Keen of Elie and Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate

Monday 5th February 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Keen of Elie]

My Lords, current figures show that 103 children were put into detention in immigration-related matters in 2016, of which 42 were under 12. Some of those may have been unaccompanied but, under the policy of the 2014 Act, unaccompanied children should not actually go into immigration removal centres; they should be held pending removal decisions. With regard to exceptional case funding, the figures for the first two quarters of 2017 indicate that the success rate for immigration-related applications was 73%. Some 652 applications were made during that period.

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

My Lords, we should remember the United Nations convention, which originally set out the criterion for granting asylum: to people in great need of protection. Does my noble and learned friend agree that it is terribly important for us to restate that, and to make sure that asylum is not used as a vehicle for immigration rather than giving the protection that the most extreme cases require?

[Lord Keen of Elie]

My Lords, it is clearly in the interests of genuine asylum seekers that the system for seeking asylum as permitted under the UN convention should not be abused and should not be seen to be abused.

Prosecutions: Defence Legal Costs

Debate between Lord Keen of Elie and Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate

Wednesday 15th March 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper. In doing so, I refer to my register entry as a solicitor.

[The Advocate-General for Scotland (Lord Keen of Elie) (Con)]

My Lords, in 2012 the Government limited reimbursement of the legal cost of defendants who had been convicted of a criminal offence. Where legal costs are still allowed—for example, where the defendant was not eligible for legal aid—the recoverable costs are limited to the equivalent of legal aid rates. A review will be conducted by April 2018.

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate]

My noble and learned friend the Minister will be aware I am sure of the recent case of an 83 year-old gentleman of good character who was acquitted of violence against an intruder on his property, but was not permitted under current rules to claim his reasonable defence costs. How can we reconcile the presumption of innocence and an acquittal with the fact that claiming legal costs incurred to maintain innocence is no longer normally possible? I know that a review of these rules is taking place; I am delighted to hear my noble and learned friend confirm that. I would be grateful if he ensured that these and similar circumstances are part of such a review, bearing in mind that the present situation is not only a deterrent to innocent parties defending themselves, but positive encouragement to sloppy preparation and decision-taking by the prosecuting authorities.

[Lord Keen of Elie]

My Lords, we are of course aware of the particular case to which my noble friend refers. I observe that the individual in question did apply for legal aid, was eligible for it and was offered it, but declined to accept it. Had he accepted that offer he would have been required to make a relatively modest contribution, which he would have been able to recover upon being acquitted. However, the individual in question decided not to accept the offer of legal aid and instead instructed lawyers privately. In those circumstances he was not eligible for recovery of costs. Of course, all these matters will be subject to the review that is to be completed by April 2018.