Clause 73 - Offences outside the United Kingdom
Sexual Offences Bill [Lords]
4:15 pm
Mr Humfrey Malins (Woking, Conservative)
I beg to move amendment No. 214, in
clause 73, page 35, line 12, after first 'or', insert 'lawfully'.
As I see it, clause 73 indicates that if a certain category of person commits an offence abroad, they are, so to speak, guilty in this country and can be charged. Under clause 2, someone who is resident in the UK—even if they are not lawfully resident in the UK—could also be charged. I wonder whether that is a good idea in principle.
I can understand why a British citizen who commits an offence in this country should be charged and prosecuted. I can equally understand why a British citizen, or someone who is lawfully resident here, who commits an offence abroad can be charged in this country. If we are discussing charging someone who is unlawfully resident in this country with an offence committed abroad, issues such as taxpayers' money and wasting time come into play.
If someone who is unlawfully resident in this country has committed an offence abroad, it would be much simpler to use our natural powers to deal with them. If those who are here unlawfully were charged in this country with an offence committed abroad, they would go through the full panoply of legal aid, which would impose a cost on the taxpayer. I wonder whether it would be worth it. Does the Under-Secretary envisage that people who are resident in this country unlawfully would fall within the ambit of the clause?