Police Searches on the Parliamentary Estate - Committee on the Issue of Privilege Contents


Annex 8

Letter from the Directorate of Legal Services, Metropolitan Police, to Kingsley Napley Solicitors

  Following the seizure of property from your client's Parliamentary and Constituency offices and his personal premises, both the MPS and the CPS have respected your client's assertion that much of the material should not be examined by reason of his claim that it attracts parliamentary privilege. As you know, Assistant Counsel to the House of Commons and the Clerk of the Journals examined the material in the presence of a member of your firm on 22 January 2009 and subsequently the Clerk to the House wrote to us identifying a small number of documents to which he found parliamentary privilege applied. Those documents were immediately returned to you.

Although your client has indicated his dissatisfaction with the decision of the Clerk of the House, no action has been taken by you or your client to make any application, take any proceedings or otherwise to resolve any outstanding disputes about parliamentary privilege. Accordingly, there has been no determination that parliamentary privilege does apply to the outstanding documents.

  As you are aware, the DPP is keen to progress this matter as quickly as possible and has taken steps himself to try and progress the matter. Advice has now been taken from Leading Counsel and, following discussion with the CPS and the specific endorsement of the DPP, I am writing to put you on notice that 24 hours after this letter is delivered to you, the material examined by Assistant Counsel to the House of Commons and to which the Clerk considered no privilege applies, will be unsealed and the CPS and MPS will recommence their investigation and consideration of the material.

Naz Saleh

Assistant Director

25 March 2009



 
previous page contents next page

House of Commons home page Parliament home page House of Lords home page search page enquiries index

© Parliamentary copyright 2010
Prepared 22 March 2010