Clause 64 - Determination by Court of Appeal
Criminal Justice Bill
5:30 pm
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield, Conservative)
The Minister might prefer to deal with this later, under clause 72 on authorisation of investigations. However, I have an anxiety about this clause. I find it difficult to see how any investigation can take place that requires the defendant to be arrested or to answer questions until the Court of Appeal has decided to grant the application and quash the previous acquittal. One cannot be arrested for an offence for which one is currently subject to an acquittal procedure. There is then, according to clause 71, provision for a short period before the retrial. I should be interested to know—although it might be easier for the Minister to tell me tomorrow morning, or to indicate that we can better deal with the matter at a later stage—how, procedurally, the process of reinvestigation marries with the Court of Appeal determination and the short period under clause 71 after which the retrial is to occur. He may wish to ponder that overnight, as he now has around
25 seconds—sorry, 10 minutes—in which to answer my questions.