Clause 11 - Assumptions to be made in case of criminal lifestyle
Proceeds of Crime Bill
6:30 pm
Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath, Conservative)
The hon. Gentleman has been helpful. When one considers amendments that move us away from blanket assumptions that the court must make and from which there is no escape to criteria, one must rely on those who make the decisions in individual court cases to use the criteria sensibly to rule out the protection of expensive dancing lessons and so on, and to use only criteria that introduce a discretion. That is what the hon. Member for Lewes and I are saying. We are worried about any question of judicial discretion being taken away completely and wholesale. It is not only the Opposition who have those concerns but Liberty, which is supported by many Government Members, including the hon. Member for Wrexham (Ian Lucas).