Counter-Terrorism Bill
1:00 pm
Lord Carlile: I have been at the Bar for 37 years and I have been plea bargaining for 37 years. There is nothing new about it, as any practising lawyer knows, but the issue is about whether we should put it on a statutory footing. Now, we probably need to place it on a statutory footing, but we should not lose the best of what we have been achieving over the years. The so-called Goodyear direction is already extremely valuable. It is a hearing in which the defence can ask the judge, in open court, to hear both sides and give a view as to what the likely sentence would be if there were a guilty plea at that stage.
What I am worried about, is us adopting the American system of plea bargaining. I have examined the so-called 5K1 procedure in considerable detail, and I have read transcripts of a complex procedure of that kind. Very much less is recorded in writing in the United States than in the United Kingdom. It is naïve to say that we can simply adopt American practices, because they would not be permitted by courts as evidence. The product would not be good evidence in courts in the United Kingdom. If we are going to structure plea bargaining, we must ensure, first, that it is done in a fair way. Secondly, reductions in sentence must be real—they must be substantial. If someone is facing a sentence of 40 years, it is no use having plea bargaining that reduces it to 36 years. That is unrealistic. Thirdly, there must be a procedure to give proper credit in a proper way—which may be highly confidential and possibly not even at the time of sentence—to people who supply substantial information that assists the prosecution and conviction of others. I hope that that answers your question.