Clause 36 - Taking a conveyance without authority:extension of prosecution time-limits
Vehicles (Crime) Bill
2:45 pm
Mr John Bercow (Buckingham, Conservative)
I beg to move amendment No. 87, in page 20, line 34, leave out `any' and insert `the'.
The clause relates to the taking of a conveyance without authority and the extension of time limits for prosecution. The argument for our amendment can be extremely crisply made. Prosecutions can be initiated by only one person. The Bill states that the extended time period under clause 36 begins from
the day on which sufficient
knowledge ``to justify the proceedings'' is obtained by ``any person responsible''. This is a genuine drafting point—whether it is minor is a matter for debate—but it seems more sensible to us that the clause should read, ``the person responsible'', rather than ``any person responsible''. Surely an individual should make the decision.