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Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill

My Lords, I agree with the comments of the noble Lord, Lord Dholakia, about the role of the Leader of the House. I add the thanks of these Benches for the way in which she has persuaded her ministerial colleagues. She will downplay the extent to which she has persuaded them, but we all know the extent to which she has put forward views from all sides of this House. Today we have before your Lordships’ House virtually 99 per cent of the package of amendments put forward in the other place. These are a close replica—with some welcome enhancements—of the package of amendments tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Ramsbotham, and repeatedly supported by noble Lords in a series of extraordinary and profound debates. It is a moment for congratulating noble Lords on the way in which they have upheld the rule of law. The principle that all are equal in the eyes of the law should apply. Noble Lords are also to be congratulated on upholding the rights of those in custody and in the hands of the state. Often the most vulnerable in our society, they must be owed a duty of care. This is a partial victory, but by no means a Pyrrhic victory. We have ensured, through proper pursuit of a vital point of principle, that ours is a system that will ultimately submit itself to the same tests of competence and decency that it imposes on others. I share the frustration of the noble Lord, Lord Dholakia, at Amendment No. 10AA, in the Government’s name, which still separates the implementation of different strands of the Bill. Whereas the Secretary of State confirmed in the other place that the various measures in the Bill will be implemented on 6 April next year, the application of the offence to deaths in custody remains out on a limb. Its introduction is not legally binding; it is not committed to in word or law. We have, however, had a number of key concessions. Mr Straw said: "““We have shifted; there is no question about that””.—[Official Report, Commons, 18/7/07; col. 337.]" Well, good on you, your Lordships. He went on to say that he very much hoped to implement these key provisions in less than the period of five to seven years. I thank the Minister for coming forward today and saying that the Government will work to a timescale of three years. However, this is still only an enabling power on the face of the Bill. I would be wrong not to express my disquiet about that. There are just under 100 provisions in the Criminal Justice Act 2003 that remain neither enacted nor repealed, wholly or partially. It is sad but true that this Government have form on omitting to enact provisions in legislation. The Minister has persuaded us that she means business. It is her personal undertaking on this that I hold most dear and most valuable. It has been a difficult time. I can imagine the pressures that have been put on the noble Lord, Lord Ramsbotham. He is a Cross-Bencher. Often in this House the Cross-Benchers take a key lead in putting forward a point of principle, and I congratulate him on the way in which he has taken forward this very important issue. He has constantly stressed the importance of recognising that, in enacting this legislation, the families of those who have been bereaved in these terrible circumstances are just as important as the families of those who have been bereaved in other circumstances. I am ever mindful of the wise words of my honourable friend in the other place, Dominic Grieve, who observed that the Government’s response to private institutions that have found it difficult to convert to health and safety legislation in the past has been quite simply, ““Tough””. Tough is exactly what I hope the Government will be: tough in the test that they set themselves and those for whose shortcomings they are ultimately responsible, and tough on any institutions that, through grossly negligent senior management, fail to prevent unnecessary loss of life among their inmates. In conclusion, I pay tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Ramsbotham, and to the other noble Lords who have supported him. Appropriately and deservedly, last week he was named and celebrated as Peer of the Year. Thanks to his vision, persistence and unflagging energy, justice will be done—sadly, not today or tomorrow, but perhaps one day.