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Baroness Scotland of Asthal: My Lords, I beg to introduce a Bill to provide for the establishment and functions of the Charity Commission for England and Wales and the Charity Appeal Tribunal; to make other amendments of the law about charities, including provisions about charitable incorporated organisations; to make further provision about public charitable collections and other fundraising carried on in connection with charities and other institutions; to make other provision about the funding of such institutions; and for connected purposes. I beg to move that this Bill be now read a first time.
Moved, That the Bill be now read a first time.(Baroness Scotland of Asthal.)
On Question, Bill read a first time, and ordered to be printed.
House adjourned at seventeen minutes past nine o'clock.
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean): My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr Jack Straw) will today lay before Parliament the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report on the Global Opportunities Fund (GOF) 200304. This is the first such report which covers the financial year (FY) 200304.
Copies will be placed in the Library of the House. Additional copies can also be obtained from the Printed Paper Office. A copy will also be available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website: http://www.fco.gov.uk/gof.
The Foreign Secretary launched the GOF in May 2003 to focus the FCO's programme spending more closely on our priorities; and to bring greater professionalism to our programme and project management work. It has made an impressive start. This report provides an overview of the GOF programmes and describes project activity. It also contains a section on lessons learned and a forward look to the current FY.
The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Scotland of Asthal): This House has today handed down the judgment in this difficult and complex case. A committee of nine Law Lords has spent the last 11 weeks considering the issues and, within the short time available since the judgment was handed down, it is not possible to give a detailed response to all the points raised by the judgment. However, given its importance I believe it necessary to make this Statement to the House as soon as possible.
This appeal is about the compatibility of our domestic law with the ECHR. The Law Lords have upheld the appeal by those detained under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act and we need to study the judgment carefully, not least because the Court of Appeal had unanimously endorsed our view that these provisions were compatible with our obligations under the ECHR. It is ultimately for Parliament to decide whether and how we should amend the law. The Part 4 provisions will remain in force until Parliament agrees the future of the law. Accordingly my right honourable friend, the Home Secretary, will not be revoking the certificates or releasing the detainees, whom we have reason to believe are a significant threat to our security, a judgment upheld by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, chaired by a High Court judge.
The primary role of my right honourable friend as Home Secretary is to protect national security and to
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ensure the safety and security of this country. In doing so, he needs to consider how we balance the rights of individuals against those of society; how we ensure safety and security within a democracy without undermining the values that are at the very heart of it.
Derogation is not something that any Government enters into lightly and the powers have been used sparingly as promised Parliament during the passage of the Act.
To date 16 individuals have been certified and detained under the Part 4 powers and another individual has been certified but is currently detained under other powers. Of these 12 remain in detention. Two have chosen to leave the country as those detained under the Part 4 powers are free to do at any time. Those certified have a right of appeal to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) which is a superior court of record, chaired by a High Court judge.
Those who have been certified and detained under the Part 4 powers are detained because they have been certified as a threat to our security. This considered assessment is supported by the Security Service and has been tested through a superior court of record with full access to all the relevant security and intelligence information.
The need for the Part 4 powers and the derogation are kept under frequent review. In addition to regular threat assessments, the Home Secretary regularly meets the Director General of the Security Service, and it is their advice that informs the Home Secretary's decision on the continuing public emergency threatening the life of the nation.
The Home Secretary will be asking Parliament to renew this legislation in the new year, but in the mean time we will be studying the judgment carefully to see whether it is possible to modify our legislation to address the concerns raised by the House.
The Attorney-General (Lord Goldsmith): The report setting out my conclusions on the issue whether in principle prosecutors should be able to interview witnesses in criminal trials has been published today. Copies have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
In reaching those conclusions I have been informed by the results of a public consultation, conducted on my behalf by the Crown Prosecution Service, and by the views expressed to me by senior members of the judiciary.
In England and Wales prosecutors are not entitled to interview witnesses before trial, even when they are key witnesses whose credibility may be critical to whether a prosecution should go ahead or not. If my vision of the CPS as a world-class prosecuting service, admired and respected, and seen by all as a champion for victims and justice is to be realised, this must change.
The public rightly expects prosecutors to prosecute criminal offences, robustly, promptly and fairly and to
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bring to trial only those against whom there is an adequate and properly prepared case (and whose prosecution is justified in the public interest) and that prosecutors have confidence in the reliability of the evidence. Logic dictates that this expectation can only be met if prosecutors are able to interview witnesses about their evidence before trial.
I have therefore concluded, for the reasons set out in the report, that the position ought to change so that prosecutors should have the ability in the future to interview witnesses, subject to safeguards including a code of practice and appropriate training.
I believe that the changes recommended will strengthen the prosecution process and contribute to putting victims and witnesses at the heart of criminal justice and more at ease with the criminal justice process.
The Director of Public Prosecutions fully supports the conclusions that I have reached. The report sets out my proposals for implementation of these conclusions through a working group to consider best how to pilot these proposals and further discussions with the professional bodies.
I am grateful to all those who contributed their time and expertise by responding to the consultation paper.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Bach): My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
In accordance with undertakings in its Race Equality Scheme, the Ministry of Defence has produced a second progress report, a copy of which is being placed today in the Library of the House. The report builds on and relates back to the first report, issued in January 2004, and describes the progress made across the department and by the Armed Forces. It emphasises our determination to maintain the standards we have achieved to date and to continue to review our policies and procedures.
Our record for managing and retaining ethnic minority personnel is good. The outcome of staff attitude surveys and the low level of race-related complaints indicate a continuing improvement in the race equality climate.
However, there is still much more work to do as the report acknowledges. The Ministry of Defence is committed to meeting the aspirations set out in the Race Equality Scheme.
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