Clause 5 - Limits on period of detention without charge
Criminal Justice Bill
9:10 am
Mr Humfrey Malins (Woking, Conservative)
I rise to my feet unexpectedly early, Mr. Illsley, which could cause me some distress. The hon. Member for Nottingham, North (Mr. Allen) will, I am sure, speak on clause stand part with his usual great authority. I remark in passing what a dreadfully early start this is.
The clause is important, and in a little while I shall come to the issues raised by the Home Affairs Committee. Suffice it to say that, dominated though it is by the Government and the Labour party, that Committee had some fairly strong views on the clause, which we may refer to again on clause stand part. I see that the hon. Member for Bradford, West (Mr. Singh) is here; he is a distinguished and experienced member of the Home Affairs Committee, and I am sure that he, too, will seek to catch your eye, Mr. Illsley, to raise his particular concerns.
It is important to assess what the Government seek to achieve with the clause. It extends the scope for an officer of the rank of superintendent to authorise detention without charge for a maximum of 36 hours. It allows detention to be extended for up to 36 hours when the relevant offence is an arrestable offence provided that the other conditions are satisfied. It is important to consider what is an arrestable offence, and for that we need to refer to section 24 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.
In summary, clause 5 seeks to widen powers of detention. For my part—I think that I speak for my party and for many Committee members—I believe that detaining someone for an indefinite time is a power to be used extremely sparingly. Over the years, those cases when the police have properly and
diligently sought to use the power to detain someone for longer than 24 hours have normally been reserved for the more serious and complicated cases. I see no argument at present for widening it to include less serious offences—so-called arrestable offences.
Is there any evidence to suggest how often, or in what proportion of cases, the power to detain for up to 36 hours, or after that time, has been needed? In the vast majority of cases the power is not necessary. It is sometimes said that when a defendant is in a drunken state, or otherwise in a poor state, the 24 hours begin to elapse at a time when it is not possible to talk to him. Sometimes there is a problem because of the defendant's mental capacity. The high-profile cases in which the power is thought to be relevant are usually those entailing a very serious allegation. In what proportion of cases will the new power be likely to be used? Will they be the most serious? If so, amendment No. 31 will naturally be accepted.
That approach would fit, for example, the situation following a robbery. The explanatory notes set out a typical instance in which it should be possible to extend the power of detention. They state:
''This broadened capacity for extended detention without charge will assist the police in dealing effectively with a range of offences, for example robbery, where it will sometimes be extremely difficult or impossible to complete the necessary investigatory processes within 24 hours.''
That is a fair point, but since the notes refer specifically to robbery, I point out to the Minister that the amendment would limit the clause but would undoubtedly leave robbery covered, as would amendment No. 15. Amendments Nos. 31 and 15 are intended to place restrictions on a very powerful provision, which will enable someone to be detained for longer than would otherwise be possible.
I want to discuss arrestable offences. Clause 5 will substitute for section 42(1)(b) of the 1984 Act, the words
''an offence for which he is under arrest is an arrestable offence''.
The term ''arrestable offence'' is a difficult and complex one, and many of us over the years have thought that any offence for which one can be arrested is an arrestable offence. Oddly enough, that is not the case. If any member of the Committee is out on the street and commits a minor offence under, say, public order provisions—an offence involving threatening or abusive behaviour—he or she can be arrested for the offence. However, it is not an arrestable offence under the Act.
That is an odd situation. A careful look at PACE and previous measures confirms that. We shall not, by agreeing to the clause, extend the power to detain in every case in which a person can be arrested, but only in cases involving an arrestable offence. Under PACE, an arrestable offence carries a sentence of five years or more in prison. Does that not mean that the clause would bite for an offence of petty theft? The shoplifter who steals an item worth £1 or £2 will be charged with an offence that is triable either way—not only in a magistrates court but in a Crown court, which has the power to sentence him to well in excess of five years. That makes petty theft an arrestable offence under the clause.