Counter-Terrorism Bill

My Lords, it is a bit of an evening for admissions of parentage. In government, I think that I was the first to press for post-charge questioning, although I confess that that was very largely to meet the argument that there was a need for an extension of the period of detention pre-charge, but it always seemed important that post-charge questioning should be subject to proper safeguards. I, too, welcome the way that my noble friend has produced the amendment. There is much merit in what the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd, said about the ambit of the questioning, but one aspect of it troubles me, and I want to hear what my noble friend says about it. That is the balance between the need for safeguards and operational requirements. I suspect that it very much depends on how one reads the words, ““the matters””. Looking at how the safeguards are drafted, that relates to questioning about the offence itself. The judge must be satisfied under what I think will become subsection (6) that, "““further questioning of the person is necessary in the interest of justice””," and, what is more, "““that what is authorised will not interfere unduly with the preparation of the person's defence””." So one would anticipate that the prosecutors will have to state why they want to question. That is fine. What would worry me is if the interpretation of the words in the noble and learned Lord’s amendment, "““the matters in respect of which the questioning is authorised””," amounted in effect to the drawing-up by the judge of a list of permissible questions. That is not how questioning takes place. I see the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd, shake his head. It will be very interesting to know how that is dealt with, but I see circumstances in which, if I were a prosecutor, I would be concerned that the effect of the amendment might be to do just that, to limit how questioning takes place. Therefore, I want to hear what my noble friend says about how the Government view the concerns about the amendment and how they intend to deal with the particular concern which the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd, has put forward.