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Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

My Lords, I thank the noble and learned Baroness for her full reply and thank all noble—and noble and learned—Lords who have spoken in this debate. I ask forgiveness from all of your Lordships if I do not refer to each excellent contribution. The noble and learned Baroness expressed concern about my troubled heart. If I may plagiarise a famous line from the film ““Casablanca””, my heart is my least vulnerable organ. The noble and learned Baroness seemed to suggest that the leitmotif of my intervention was that the Bar was under threat. I respectfully suggest that either I misspoke, as a famous lady across the Atlantic said, or at least I did not speak with enough clarity. My proposition is not that the Bar is under threat from the Government’s proposals, but that the defendant is under threat as a result. That is the basis for all the concern that we have been expressing this afternoon. I agree with the noble and learned Baroness that the Government share our view that, at this juncture, it is appropriate for non-qualified CPS employees to deal only with summary offences that do not have a sentence of imprisonment at the end. There is no difference between us on that matter. The only question is whether we want to go a step further some years hence. Should the Government have to come back with primary legislation or can this matter be dealt with more informally? The noble and learned Baroness with typical generosity made a concession in saying that she would introduce a further safeguard of an independent qualified lawyer to look at a proposal by the CPS to make this transition. I am grateful to her for going to the trouble of doing that, but on balance I still prefer our amendment. I have no doubt whatever about the quality of DCWs. There are many extremely well-qualified DCWs in the CPS, but the noble and learned Baroness will have heard many of your Lordships express concerns about the adequacy of the training that they are likely to receive. I am particularly exercised by the fact that, although a deal will be struck with ILEX on these matters, which I hope will be satisfactory—I am thinking particularly of the remarks of the noble Viscount, Lord Bledisloe, on the issue—it is also important that they are seen to be properly qualified. That is why the intermediation of an approved regulator is so important. I accept that that is prohibited in the 2007 Act because of the provision in Schedule 3; but if these amendments are passed by the House that will be a later proposal and therefore the provision in the 2007 Act will fall. I am grateful for the Minister’s assurance about the VOOs, but frankly this matter should not be handled in any circumstances and in any way by DCWs. For all those reasons, I wish to test the opinion of the House. On Question, Whether the said amendment (No. 82) shall be agreed to? Their Lordships divided: Contents, 183; Not-Contents, 113.