Letter from the Chair of the Committee
to Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP, Home Secretary, dated 8 July 2009
BULLEN AND
SONEJI V
UNITED KINGDOM
(APP NO
3383/06, 8 JANUARY 2009)
The Joint Committee on Human Rights is continuing
its practice of reviewing the implementation of judgments of the
European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) finding the UK to be in
breach of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
I am writing to inquire about the Government's
response to the judgment in Bullen and Soneji v United Kingdom,
which became final on 1 April 2009. In Bullen and Soneji,
the applicants complained that the length of criminal proceedings
against them, which included confiscation proceedings, had contravened
the reasonable time requirements of Article 6(1) ECHR. The Court
found a breach of Article 6(1) holding:
"In light of the importance of what was
at stake for the applicants in this case and without discounting
the complexity of the legal issue in question, the Court finds
the periods of delay attributable to the State, when taken cumulatively,
to be unreasonably long and in breach of the reasonable time requirement
as provided by Article 6 of the Convention." (para.
71)
I would be grateful for your response to the
following questions:
1. What steps, if any, does the Government intend
to take to give effect to the ECtHR's decision in Bullen and
Soneji?
2. Does the Government propose to revise guidance
and training to relevant authorities such as prosecutors and the
courts to ensure that future proceedings meet the reasonable time
requirement in Article 6(1)? If so, please provide us with information
about the revisions which the Government proposes. If not, please
explain why not.
In addition, please provide us with copies of
the Government's submissions to the Committee of Ministers and
ensure that we continue to be updated as further information is
provided.
8 July 2009
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