Vote Bundle Text (951213-07)

Amendments proposed to the Northern Ireland (offences) Bill - continued	House of Commons

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Reporting of proceedings

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC10

To move the following Clause:—

'Except where the court has ruled that doing so would create a danger to the safety of any person, there shall be no restrictions on publishing details of any proceedings under sections 8, 12, 15, 16 or 17 of this Act in a written report in or including a report of such an application in a relevant programme for reception in the United Kingdom.'.

Expiry

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC11

To move the following Clause:—

'This Act shall cease to have any effect at the end of the period of five years beginning with the day on which it is brought into force.'.

Suspension of section 3

Mr Laurence Robertson
Mr Henry Bellingham
Mr Ben Wallace
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Mr Jeremy Hunt

NC12

To move the following Clause:—

'The Secretary of State shall make an order suspending the operation of section 3 six months after the Act comes into force.'.

Trial in the Crown Court

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC13

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) A person who holds a certificate of eligibility shall be tried for a certified offence in the Crown Court.

(2) The Crown Court may, not under this section, try any offence that is not a certified offence.

(3) There is an obligation on a defendant to appear before the Crown Court.'.

Review by Court of Appeal

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC14

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) The exercise of functions under this Act by—

(a)	the certification commissioner, or

(b)	the Secretary of State,

may be questioned in legal proceedings only the Court of Appeal.

(2) The Court of Appeal is the appropriate tribunal for the purposes of section 7 of the Human Rights Act 1998 (c. 42) in relation to proceedings all or part of which call into question the exercise of any of the functions under this Act of—

(a)	the certification commissioner, or

(b)	the Secretary of State.'.

Appeal to Court of Appeal

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC15

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) A person convicted of an offence at the Crown Court may appeal to the Court of Appeal.

(2) He may appeal—

(a)	against his conviction, on any ground;

(b)	against sentence passed on conviction, unless the sentence is fixed by law.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2) (b) an order under Article 5 (1) or (3) of the Life Sentences (Northern Ireland) Order 2001 (S.I., 2001 / 2564 (N.I. 2)) (tariffs etc., in life sentence cases) is a sentence passed on conviction (but not a sentence fixed by law).

(4) No leave is required for an appeal to be brought under this section.

(5) There is no appeal from the Court of Appeal exercising jurisdiction under this section.'.

Review of appeals commissioners by Court of Appeal

Lembit Öpik
Lorely Burt

NC16

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) The exercise of functions under this Act by the appeals commissioners may be questioned in legal proceedings only before the Court of Appeal.

(3) There is no appeal from the Court of Appeal exercising jurisdiction under this section.'.

Trial in the Crown Court (No.2)

Lady Hermon

NC17

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) A person who holds a certificate of eligibility shall be tried for the offences certified in that certificate in the Crown Court.

(2) Nothing in this Act shall affect the powers of the Crown Court with regard to the conduct of its proceedings and in particular its power to compel the attendance of the accused.

(3) Notwithstanding the Interception of Communications Act 1985, intercepted communications shall be admissible in proceedings concerning a person who holds a cerfificate of eligibility and subject to the overriding control of the court may only be adduced by the prosecution.

(4) Intercepted communications shall not be subject to any form of discovery by the accused.'.

Trial in the crown court (No. 3)

Mr Laurence Robertson
Mr Henry Bellingham
Mr Ben Wallace
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Mr Jeremy Hunt

NC18

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) A person who holds a certificate of eligibility shall be tried for a certified offence in the Crown Court.

(2) There is a legal obligation on a defendant to appear before the Court.

(3) Failure by the defendant to appear before the Court shall constitute a criminal offence.

(4) The Court may impose such trial conditions on the defendant as it deems necessary.'.

Duty of Secretary of State to specify certain organisations

Mark Durkan
Dr Alasdair McDonnell

NC19

To move the following Clause:—

'The Secretary of State shall specify, for the purposes of this Act, any organisation which he believes—

(a)	has not established or is not maintaining a complete and unequivocal ceasefire;

(b)	has not completed decommissioning to the satisfaction of the Commission referred to in section 7(1) of the Northern Ireland Arms Decommissioning Act 1997; or

(c)	has not ended its involvement in—

(i)	attacks on the security forces, murders, sectarian attacks, riots, or other criminal offences (including organised crime);

(ii)	training, targeting, intelligence gathering, acquisition or development of arms or weapons or other preparations for terrorist campaigns; or

(iii)

punishment beatings or attacks or exiling,

to the satisfaction of the Monitoring Commission referred to in section 1(1) of the Northern Ireland (Monitoring Commission etc.) Act 2003.'.

Entitlement to certificate and licence: further provisions

Mr Peter Robinson
Mr Jeffrey M. Donaldson
Sammy Wilson

NC20

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) If a person who is on licence under section 9 is convicted of an offence which (or the conduct constituting which) might have been specified in a certificate of eligibility, but which was not specified in such a certificate, the Secretary of State shall revoke the person's licence.

(2) Where a person has been granted a certificate of eligibility in which certain conduct, or certain offences, are specified, and is on licence, no further certificate may be granted to that person in respect of any other offences.'.

Registration by victim that prosecution should not be brought

Mark Durkan
Dr Alasdair McDonnell

NC21

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) A victim may register with the certification commissioner that he does not wish for a prosecution to be brought in respect of an offence to which this Act applies against any person who gives a full and truthful confession to his involvement in the offence.'.

(2) A victim may further register his wish that the confession be given by any such person in his presence.

(3) The certification commissioner shall make public any wishes submitted under subsections (1) and (2) in such manner as he sees fit.

(4) Where a victim has registered his wishes under subsection (1), any person who holds a certificate of eligibility and who has, in the opinion of the certification commissioner, given a full and truthful confession to that offence may not be prosecuted before the Special Tribunal; provided that—

(a)	where a wish has been registered under subsection (2), the confession has been read by any such person in the victim's presence;

(b)	the commissioner is satisfied that the wishes of the victim were freely given and without coercion; and

(c)	the confession is read in public by the person.'.

Consultation by commissioner

Mark Durkan
Dr Alasdair McDonnell

NC22

To move the following Clause:—

'In this Act, before the commissioner concludes that a confession is full and truthful, he must consult regarding it with—

(a)	the Secretary of State;

(b)	the Director of Public Prosecutions;

(c)	the Chief Constable;

(d)	the Police Ombudsman;

(e)	the victim who has registered his wishes under this section;

(f)	any other victim, where identifiable and practicable; and

(g)	the public in such manner as the commissioner sees fit.'.

Lady Hermon

228

Title, leave out from beginning to 'before' in line 2 and insert 'To provide an amnesty for those who have committed certain offences'.

ORDER OF THE HOUSE [23rd NOVEMBER 2005]

That the following provisions shall apply to the Northern Ireland (Offences) Bill:

Committal

1. The Bill shall be committed to a Standing Committee.

Proceedings in Standing Committee

2. Proceedings in the Standing Committee shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion on Thursday 15th December 2005.

3. The Standing Committee shall have leave to sit twice on the first day on which it meets.

Consideration and Third Reading

4. Proceedings on consideration shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion one hour before the moment of interruption on the day on which those proceedings are commenced.

5. Proceedings on Third Reading shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at the moment of interruption on that day.

6. Standing Order No. 83B (Programming committees) shall not apply to proceedings on consideration and Third Reading.

Other Proceedings

7. Any other proceedings on the Bill (including any proceedings on consideration of Lords Amendments or on any further message from the Lords) may be programmed.

ORDER OF THE COMMITTEE [6th DECEMBER 2005]

That—

(1) during proceedings on the Northern Ireland (Offences) Bill, in addition to its first meeting at 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday 6th December, the Standing Committee shall meet—

(a)	at 4.30 p.m. on Tuesday 6th December;

(b)	at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 8th December;

(c)	at 10.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. on Tuesday 13th December;

(d)	at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 15th December;

(2) the proceedings shall be taken in the following order: Clauses 1 and 2; Schedule 1; Clauses 3 to 8; Schedule 2; Clauses 9 to 13; Schedule 3; Clauses 14 and 15; Schedule 4; Clauses 16 and 17; Schedule 5; Clause 18; Schedule 6; Clauses 19 to 27; new Clauses; new Schedules; remaining proceedings on the Bill;

(3) the proceedings shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at 4.00 p.m. on Thursday 15th December.




©Parliamentary copyright 2005	Prepared 13 Dec 2005