Clause 3 - Judicial Appointments Commission
Justice (Northern Ireland)
9:30 am
Mr Lembit Öpik (Montgomeryshire, Liberal Democrat)
We have some sympathy with amendment No. 7. Indeed, we put our names to a similar amendment tabled by the hon. Member for North Down (Lady Hermon). I therefore do not need to repeat the arguments that were made. However, I have some slight concerns about amendment No. 8. It seems to take a rather absolutist position, given that some of the people who have claimed to be members of proscribed organisations have gone on to have a positive impact on the peace process. There should be a degree of independence, and we should be a little cautious about a blanket exclusion.
The sentiment behind the amendments could be more suitably expressed using the terms in the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000, under which someone can be prevented from being an independent member of the Policing Board if they are not clearly committed to exclusively peaceful and democratic means. The framing of such a provision is, of course, a matter of judgment, and I shall be interested to hear what the Minister and the hon. Member for Reigate (Mr. Blunt) say in response to my concern.