Serious Crime Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 66: 66: Clause 50, page 29, line 23, leave out subsection (2) The noble Lord said: My Lords, this is the last of my probing amendments to Part 2. It was tabledas Amendment No. 102 in Committee to elicit a response from the Government as to whether, witha portfolio of offences to be considered underClause 41, if one or all those offences would otherwise be subject to summary trial they would still nevertheless be triable on indictment. Again, the Minister’s letter was most helpful. She illustrated in her response that under the provisions of Clause 41 the defendant would be subject to punishment based on the most serious offence out of a possible, say, three, that he believed could have been committed. She went on to say that if he believed that every offence would be committed, he would then be subject to trial under three separate offences of encouraging or assisting under Clause 40. Two questions remain. First, were the court to decide that a defendant under Clause 41 would be more appropriately tried under Clause 40, what would the process for converting the prosecution be? Secondly, I was disappointed that the Minister failed to answer my question in Committee whether a portfolio of offences that are otherwise summary offences would be subject under Clause 41 to trial by indictment. I appreciate that Clause 41 could be expediently deployed but seek further clarification from the Minister on those two points. I beg to move.