Clause 42
Legal Services Bill [Lords]
6:00 pm
Simon Hughes (Party President, Cross-Portfolio and Non-Portfolio Responsibilities; North Southwark and Bermondsey, Liberal Democrat)
I expected the Minister to say what she said, but I would like to ask some further questions. Elsewhere in the Ministry of Justice portfolio, there is a Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Bill, which I anticipate will be discussed on the Floor of the House on Report and Third Reading in the relatively near future. One of the issues with that Bill is powers of entry, to which the clause also relates. We should not legislate to give powers of entry without people knowing clearly who will come to enter and what powers they will have. Such people should be clearly identifiable as people with authority.
What protection will the Bill provide for a citizen or organisation—by definition, it could be an individual or a company? What does the Bill provide to ensure that people know that a person coming to enter comes with authority? I am troubled because a recent review of current powers of entry under law showed that there are hundreds and that they relate to different people and organisations. The ordinary woman or man should know that people who come to enter do so with authority, and how to check that. How would a person know that another was authorised and what would they have to do to find out? I appreciate that that might be a secondary legislation point, but giving more powers willy-nilly to people to knock on doors and to enter is dangerous, unless we protect citizens against it, except for in the most extreme circumstances. People should know exactly what the score is and have the ability to avoid such action.