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Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Bill

I will begin on a positive note by telling the hon. Member for South Antrim (Dr. McCrea) that I will not withdraw new clause 5. I do not wish to disappoint him, but I think that it serves a purpose. The new clause constitutes part of the general discussion of the Government’s wish to ensure that policing and criminal justice are devolved by May 2008. As today’s debate has made clear, some Members and parties are sceptical about that, but the discussion of the triple lock is relevant because the triple lock is a consequence of earlier legislation and earlier Government commitments. As I said in my opening remarks, new clause 5 has a purpose, which is to provide an extra model for the Assembly to consider. The hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr. Bone) asked why the new clause had not been tabled in Committee. The simple answer is that we were waiting for the Committee on Preparation for Government in the Assembly to complete its deliberations on the potential models. The Committee stage in the House of Commons was completed very quickly—as a result, my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State tells me, of co-operation and discussion—and the Committee on Preparation for Government deliberated after our Committee stage had ended. New clause 5 is another option for the Assembly to consider when it considers the potential for devolution of criminal justice and policing matters. The triple lock applies. If the Assembly does not wish to support the devolution and the First and Deputy First Minister do not wish to promote it to the Assembly, it will be almost impossible politically, let alone legislatively, for the Secretary of State to impose it on the Assembly. I assure Members that that is not the Government’s wish or intention.