---

UK-US Extradition Treaty

I want to clarify the nature of the hon. Gentleman’s argument. He seems almost to be suggesting that we should make it the responsibility of a judge at a hearing to determine whether it is appropriate for the Serious Fraud Office in this case, but in other cases the Crown Prosecution Service, to take a view about whether a prosecution should occur, and that we abrogate that responsibility, which is for prosecutors. Perhaps I have misunderstood him. Alternatively, he is suggesting that the judge would oblige the SFO to investigate a case when the SFO decided that the best place to try it is elsewhere, as in the case of the three individuals under discussion. We should also remember that the district judge said that he had real concerns that, were there an obligation on the SFO to undertake a complete investigation, when it had already been done in the US, there could be issues around abuse of process, which would be serious. Is it the hon. Gentleman’s view that we should return to a situation in which we must have a mini-trial in each case to examine all the evidence—some such cases have lasted 30 months and one lasted 10 years—and that that would also apply in terrorist cases?