Lord Ackner: My Lords, perhaps I may intervene before the noble Lord, Lord Kingsland, speaks. I have one or two random points to make in regard to jury trial and the present situation. First, it would be totally unrealistic if we did not recognise that there was a perception among the minorities that one obtained a better category of justice through trial by judge and jury than by judge alone. There is a...
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I respectfully seek to support what the noble Lord, Lord Goodhart, has said—which is in forensic terms, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". The statute is in wholly permissive language: "A court considering a claim in negligence may", not "must". Nothing has been made mandatory in the amendment and therefore the law can be left as it is—perfectly fluid and able to progress as it...
Lord Ackner: asked Her Majesty's Government: Whether they will accept the recommendation of the Civil Justice Council in its response of 17 November 2005 to the Department for Constitutional Affairs for a fundamental review of the policy to charge litigants in the civil courts the total costs of running those courts less fee exemptions and remissions.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, it is common ground that the Civil Justice Council is there as a watchdog over the civil courts and that in the past the former Chief Justice and the Chief Justice before him have combined with the council and the Council of Judges to condemn the policy that has just been mentioned. I should make it clear that this is not a frontal attack on the noble and learned Lord the Lord...
Lord Ackner: My Lords, no one has made reference to the fact that the provision of a civil litigation system is in the public interest, as it provides a civilised way of effectively dealing with disputes. It goes beyond the ordinary question of what the litigant gains; the public make a substantial gain. Accordingly, there should be a contribution from general taxation, and costs should not be left solely...
Lord Ackner: My Lords, until the noble Lord, Lord Phillips of Sudbury, intervened, I thought he was a friend of mine. If he were really interested in how I obtained my sobriquet, he would have asked me that in private. I never have any secrets from the House. There is a certain sweetness about this which I hope he would naturally associate with me. On my fourth birthday, I was presented with a chocolate...
Lord Ackner: moved Amendment No. 1: Page 2, line 31, at beginning insert "if the individual so chooses,"
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I do not claim paternity of this short, simple and important amendment; I concede that honour to the noble Lord, Lord Bassam of Brighton. The limited function to which I am entitled to limited credit is to draw your Lordships' attention to the extent to which he is neglecting his own offspring and to invite your Lordships to give statutory protection to the infant. The amendment...
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I strongly support the principle, which has just been elegantly announced.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, the Minister accepted that this might relate to perception. Is it not the Government's view that that can be vital—hence the decision to move the entirety of the Lords of Appeal out of this House?
Lord Ackner: asked Her Majesty's Government: What are the likely consequences to the Western Circuit, and in particular to the county of Hampshire, of their proposals to merge police authorities, and in particular any merger of the Hampshire police force with a police force other than Dorset or Wiltshire.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I ask the Question with a little more than that thin veneer of confidence which characterises the few that I put before your Lordships. I do so because my noble and learned friend the Lord Chancellor gave an undertaking to the Western Circuit in July 2004 that, while he was Lord Chancellor, Hampshire would remain part of the Western Circuit. I ask whether he is prepared to abide by...
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I apologise for interrupting the noble Baroness, but I do not understand why the second stage should prevent one learning from experience. One of the advantages of doing it in two stages is that you have the opportunity to learn from experience. Yet what the noble Baroness is proposing is making that, if not impossible, then very difficult.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, why have we dropped the use of the word "effect" and seized upon this odd word "impact"?
Lord Ackner: My Lords, I agree that subsection (3) must clearly go, for the reasons which have been fully explained. However, I also agree with the noble Lord, Lord Kingsland, that this is no matter of principle but one of drafting. I would strongly support his proposals in Amendment No. 9, as and when we come to it.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, have the Government made any estimate of the effect of the embargo on non-serious operations on the NHS deficit? If the deficit is not cleared off, will it be carried forward into the next fiscal year?
Lord Ackner: My Lords—
Lord Ackner: My Lords, is the answer to the question simply "No"? The European Court of Justice has not issued a judgment agreeing that the European Commission has the power to require. All it has done is to issue a judgment which enables it to make a proposal, which is quite different.
Lord Ackner: My Lords, would your Lordships allow me to agree with the Minister? There is no need for any further clarification. This was a case where alcohol had been consumed and it is common knowledge that alcohol can dull the inhibitions. As a result, consent can be given which otherwise would not occur. A good example of a non-sexual kind occurred in Cambridge where an undergraduate of Magdalene...
Lord Ackner: I support what has just been said. Unless there is a suggestion that the burden could be treated as evidential, a sizeable burden has been placed on the defence. It would be quite contrary in cases of this kind for the defence to shoulder entirely new burdens. The evidential approach gets over that altogether. There must be some material, but once there is some material, the defence awaits...
