Clause 5 - Proceedings for a delivery order
International Criminal Court Bill [Lords]
3:30 pm
Professor Ross Cranston (Solicitor General, Law Officers' Department; Dudley North, Labour)
Service personnel are subject to civilian courts, so I think that my point answers the argument about the issue of confidence.
The next fallacy is more fundamental. Courts martial—the service courts that he mentioned—are not standing courts, nor are they courts of general jurisdiction. They are ad hoc courts that come into being to deal with a particular case. They deal with certain offences committed by service personnel. They do not have a general role in, for example, extradition proceedings, so in our view, there is no role for them in the process under discussion.
Military personnel will have their interests protected and safeguarded in the same way as other accused persons arrested under an ICC warrant. I do not want to enter a large debate about the alleged concern of people in the armed services about the Bill. The Ministry of Defence was involved in the negotiations in Rome and in the drafting of the Bill. My hon. Friend the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office quoted the exact words of Admiral Sir Michael Boyce on the Floor of the House and I do not want to get into that debate. The MOD and the armed services are fully on board with regard to the Bill.