Extradition Act 2003 (Amendment to Designations) Order 2010

My Lords, the Extradition Act 2003 has played a vital role in ensuring that the UK’s extradition relations with countries around the world work efficiently and effectively. Today, in an effort to further improve international co-operation, we seek to add Libya to the schedule of territories designated as extradition partners under Part 2 of the Act. We are concerned here with further secondary legislation required to amend the Extradition Act 2003 (Designation of Part 2 Territories) Order 2010. This instrument affects the UK’s extradition arrangements with Libya. This order reflects the fact that the UK and Libya have signed an extradition treaty and exchanged instruments of ratification. Designation of Libya as a category 2 country will enable the advantages of this agreement to be given full effect in the United Kingdom. The extradition treaty between the UK and Libya, signed by the then Foreign Office Minister and the Libyan Minister for European Affairs in November 2008, is one of a package of measures designed to increase co-operation between the law enforcement agencies of our two countries. The package of measures also includes agreements on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, on prisoner transfer and on mutual legal assistance in civil and commercial matters. The measures will play an important role in improving judicial co-operation between the UK and Libya. They were an integral part of wider discussions with Libya to improve diplomatic relations between our countries. The extradition treaty allows extradition to be requested for any offence that attracts a maximum penalty of at least 12 months’ imprisonment in both the UK and Libya. The evidential requirements set out in the treaty mean that both the United Kingdom and Libya must provide a prima facie evidential case against any person whom they wish to extradite. There are currently no formal extradition arrangements between the UK and Libya, outside a number of international conventions, to which we are both party, which deal with a limited number of specific offences concerning serious criminal conduct such as terrorism or drug smuggling. The introduction of a formal basis for extradition for conduct covered by the bilateral extradition treaty will lead to a more efficient and effective process of extradition between our two countries. This is preferable to relying on the ad hoc provisions in domestic extradition law for the many serious offences such as murder and rape that do not fall under the international conventions to which I have referred. One key advantage of the new arrangements is that they will improve our ability to achieve justice for British victims of serious crimes. The extradition treaty between the United Kingdom and Libya will provide both Governments with a sound formal framework for future co-operation. We are clear that we will not allow criminals to escape justice by crossing international borders, and we are committed to assisting our international partners to do the same. The amendments are necessary to ensure that the United Kingdom can comply with its obligations under the bilateral extradition treaty with Libya. That is what the order seeks to achieve, and I urge noble Lords to support it. I beg to move.