Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Bill

We have confidence that the judiciary can deal with applications for non-jury trials where that is provided for in measures such as the Criminal Justice Act 2003. It is the people who support the Government on clause 7 who believe that courts cannot be trusted with that role, and that only the DPP can be trusted to make a judgment in such matters. To give the DPP unique and overriding powers of judgment, above, beyond and immune from the court, is extremely peculiar. Surely, that turns on its head the proper relationship between the prosecution and the court in its determinations. The hon. Lady says that the Government’s amendments deal with the issue, so I give her another chance to tell me how a defendant or lawyer could mount a judicial review that had even a chance of success on grounds of dishonesty or bad faith when there was no information that they could challenge. How could someone mount a successful challenge with no information? How could they claim that there was bad faith, dishonesty or an error in law when they had no way of knowing the grounds for the certificate and the courts were allowed no way of finding out? That is what the legislation proposes and it is wrong. Courts in Northern Ireland want better than to administer law in that way. They do not want to be fettered and overridden by a DPP who is entirely unaccountable and unchallengeable.