Clause 41 - Disqualification of lay justices who
Courts Bill [Lords]
3:30 pm
Mr Christopher Leslie (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs; Shipley, Labour)
I beg to move amendment No. 21, in
clause 41, page 20, line 27, at end insert—
'( ) No act is invalidated merely because of the disqualification under this section of the person by whom it is done.'.
I should like at the outset to put this amendment in context. Clause 41 deals with the disqualification of lay justices who are members of local authorities—in other words, councillors. It provides that a magistrate who is a member of a local authority may not sit in cases where that authority has an interest. It replicates
section 66 of the Justices of the Peace Act 1997, which included a provision which meant that no Act was to be invalidated merely because a justice was disqualified. That provision was removed in the other place because of concerns about ''fair tribunals'', arising from article 6 of the European convention on human rights.
The Government remain satisfied that the inclusion of that provision does not infringe article 6. The Joint Committee on Human Rights published its agreement with that view in its fourth report for the 2002–03 session. Its members are satisfied that the clause, as originally drafted, did not infringe article 6 of the ECHR. The Government pay considerable attention to the views of that Committee, and we do not believe that we should disagree with it on this occasion. We consider that it would be inappropriate for the amendment that was tabled in the other place to stand, and that is why we are seeking to move the amendment to correct it at this stage.
Article 6 of the ECHR refers to the determination of a party's civil rights and obligations, or of any criminal charge against him. Where the justices act in circumstances that do not engage the article, or where the participation of the individual does not violate it—as may be the case at an interlocutory hearing on uncontentious matters—the subsection would provide that the action would not be invalidated merely because of the disqualification. If it is felt that article 6 applies in a particular case, it is always possible for a party to appeal. Where no prejudice is caused by the magistrate's disqualification, it would be unreasonable and burdensome to invalidate those decisions.