Clause 7 - Guidance for criminal justice organisations on human rights standards
Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill [Lords]
10:30 am
Mr Alistair Carmichael (Shadow Minister (Northern Ireland), Northern Ireland Affairs; Orkney and Shetland, Liberal Democrat)
I hope that the Minister will accept that I have, as a Liberal, stronger internationalist credentials than some hon. Members with whom I must share the Opposition Benches. However, I have some sympathy for the arguments advanced by the hon. Member for Beaconsfield, whether or not they are knee-jerk reactions. If the intention is to issue guidance on various international treaties, conventions and whatever else to which we are party, surely we should declare it. The elegant way of doing so would be to insert a schedule that listed them. That schedule could, perhaps, be updated from time to time by statutory instrument, which is the Government's chosen way of amending primary legislation these days. That would be better than endlessly using the phrase ''international human rights standards'', as the hon. Gentleman said. If the Government's intentions are what the Minister says they are, why does he not seek for them to be reflected in the Bill?