My Lords, Clause 140 provides for a requirement to produce a nationality document in the case where,
“an individual has been arrested on suspicion of the commission of an offence”,
and,
“an immigration officer or constable”,
gives,
“the individual a notice requiring the production of a nationality document”.
This amendment comes from the Joint Committee on Human Rights, of which I am a member. The committee regarded Article 14—the anti-discrimination article—as being engaged. The organisation Liberty has argued that if these powers,
“are to operate in a similar fashion to powers in the Immigration Bill”,
which a number of us will recall,
“immigration checks would become a routine aspect of every police engagement with a suspect. It is difficult to think how suspicion”,
which is required,
“will be generated if this is not the intended model, short of the police making assumptions about an individual’s status on the basis of appearance or accent”.
The committee noted the risk in this provision that requirements to confirm nationality could have a differential impact on BAME UK citizens. As our report says:
“We also questioned whether a person asked to produce a passport or other nationality document should instead be entitled to supply documentation sufficient to demonstrate an entitlement to such a document”,
since not everyone has a passport. We contacted the then Minister for the subject, who told the committee in the summer:
“Before deciding to issue a notice requiring a nationality document to be produced, as a matter of operational best practice, officers should check whether or not there is an immigration interest with Home Office Immigration Enforcement. If, having undertaken these checks, it is confirmed that the individual is not a UK national (or it is suspected the person may not be), it is a proportionate response to require the production of a document in order to properly establish identity. Should a UK national not possess a passport but are able to produce evidence (documentary or otherwise) that they are entitled to one under the terms of published guidance, it is reasonable that officers should take that into account. We”—
the Government—
“do not consider it necessary that such eventualities are set out on the face of the Bill, but will instead issue guidance to officers in that regard”.
The Joint Committee made the following point:
“If the Government accepts that alternative documentation may be required in circumstances where an individual does not possess a passport or driving licence, it is not clear why this fact should not be stated on the face of the Bill”.
This is a safeguard, after all, and something more than operational guidance would be appropriate. I beg to move.