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Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

The Minister makes it sound as though I just made a major attack on the magistracy. That is surely not the case. I do not need to say all the things that the noble Lord has said about the magistrates for it to be absolutely clear that we on this side of the Committee are sterling supporters of the magistracy, and have been since time immemorial. I confess that I had not understood that the clause had custody plus in mind. The whole basis of the Minister’s response to me is that custody plus is a policy that is still up and running, and that the Government intend to implement as soon as possible. That, as I understand it, is the tenor of his response.