Clause 4
Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Bill
6:15 pm
Alan Reid (Shadow Minister, Northern Ireland Affairs; Argyll and Bute, Liberal Democrat)
I agree with the hon. Lady and share her concerns. Subsection (2) allows the Lord Chief Justice to decide that a trial, a part of a trial, or a whole class of trials should be held somewhere other than Belfast. The hon. Lady read out a list of the various offices to which the Lord Chief Justice could delegate that decision. Many of the people on that list will not be legally qualified. I am concerned that they would be taking very important decisions. Members of various tribunals might not have a legal qualification. I do not think it appropriate that everyone on that list should have this power. I am not familiar with all the courts in Northern Ireland and whether they have the same levels of security as the courts in Belfast. I would certainly want the Minister to address that issue. Do other courts have the correct security facilities to protect the identity of witnesses who have been granted anonymity? The hon. Lady has raised some important points and I ask the Minister to respond.