Clause 6 - criminal penalties
Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill
11:30 am
David Heath (Shadow Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs & Shadow Leader of the House, Law Officers (Constitutional Affairs); Somerton and Frome, Liberal Democrat)
I am grateful, although the hon. Member for Forest of Dean expressed most of what I was going to say in his short speech or intervention.
I am grateful to the Minister for agreeing to reconsider the matter. He might want to reflect on what he said earlier—praying in aid the apparent delay in implementation of Law Commission proposals. It is inconceivable that a Law Commission proposal that increases criminal sanctions and deals therefore with criminal law and serious offences cannot fall within the scope of a criminal justice Bill and is better done by order. There is therefore no harm to the Government’s legislative programme. The delay—if there is a delay—is entirely in the Government’s hands because they have had the legislative opportunity every year to introduce Law Commission proposals in the area of criminal justice. I accept that there might be an argument in civil law, but not in criminal law because there is always an appropriate Bill.