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Coroners and Justice Bill

Clause 128 and Schedule 15 implement the European Council Framework Decision of July 2008 on taking account of convictions in EU member states in the course of new criminal proceedings. Courts will be required to treat previous convictions of other member states in the same way as previous UK convictions. To a large extent this merely sets out what can and does already happen. For example, overseas convictions can already be adduced as evidence of bad character or taken into account in sentencing decisions. The framework decision requires member states to implement it by August next year. We consider that perfectly feasible because taking account of EU convictions is something that our courts do already. We accept entirely that there needs to be an appropriate mechanism for swiftly obtaining information on previous convictions from other member states in an understandable form that meets the requirements of our courts, and for providing further information where there is a challenge. What we do not accept is any need to delay implementing this framework decision until new EU legislation is in place governing the exchange of conviction data. I say that because there is already a mechanism, through a Council decision of November 2005, that requires member states to send to the UK details of convictions of UK nationals and allow the previous convictions of EU nationals being prosecuted here to be obtained from the home country. Information is obtained through the UK Central Authority for the Exchange of Criminal Records, which has already dealt with well over 20,000 notifications, and in 2008 alone made over 4,000 requests, approximately a third of which showed previous convictions. The authority therefore already has considerable expertise in ensuring a read-across from EU to UK offences, thus enabling UK courts to recognise EU convictions effectively. We recognise that the number of cases in which other EU member state convictions are requested can be expected to increase over the next few years. Work is under way to prepare for implementation of the related framework decision on the organisation and content of information extracted from criminal records between member states, which must be implemented by February 2012. Work is also under way to implement the Council decision on the establishment of the European Criminal Records Information System. That provides for the development of a computerised system for the exchange of information on convictions between member states. Together, those decisions will lead to the adoption of a standardised European format to allow information to be exchanged in a uniform way. They will provide an added degree of comprehensiveness, standardisation and modernisation to support a more widespread and routine use of foreign convictions in future. Ultimately, if the courts are not satisfied that there has been a previous conviction, or that it has a UK equivalent, they simply will not take it into account. We think that the mechanisms already in place should provide the necessary assurance, though, and we certainly intend to make sure that they do. Quite apart from the need to implement the framework decision by the deadline, we believe that there is no need to delay reinforcing in statute what is already being done successfully thousands of times a year. We would describe Amendment 191AAA as well intentioned but unnecessary. All EU member states are subject to Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees the right to a fair trial. The framework decision is predicated on compliance with the convention and states that it shall not have the effect of amending the obligation to respect those fundamental rights. It will not be necessary for courts to consider the procedural proprieties of trials in other member states; despite differences in national legal systems, convicted persons throughout the European Union will have had recourse to the same framework of rights by which to challenge the previous conviction if it was procedurally unsound. With regard to convictions from countries outside the EU, our courts in the UK are obliged to act in accordance with Article 6 so could not properly take into account a conviction that was shown to have resulted from an unfair trial. There is also no material change being proposed that affects countries outside the EU. No legislation is needed to implement the framework decision on the organisation and content of information extracted from criminal records between member states. As I say, I cannot agree to the noble Lord’s request to defer implementation of the framework decision on taking account of convictions in member states. We are duty-bound to implement the decision by August 2010, and the Government honour our obligations under EU laws. The noble Lord raised the issue of bad character. The provisions on bad character evidence apply to all overseas previous convictions and are not limited to EU convictions. This is not a change to the existing law but a clarification of it, simply reflecting the position set out by the Court of Appeal in R v Kordasinski in 2006. In that judgment the Court of Appeal confirmed that overseas convictions could be adduced as evidence of bad character under the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. Nothing in any of the provisions alters or affects our courts in the UK dealing with overseas previous convictions from outside the UK. As for offences, convictions and sentencing differ across the 27 member states so the provision for proving convictions by means of a certificate from the convicting court will not work. I remind the Committee that a similar provision for proving foreign convictions is in force in Section 7 of the Evidence Act 1851 and has not given rise to challenges. Convictions from other EU member states are not sent direct to the court but are routed through the UK Central Authority for the Exchange of Criminal Records, which has itself built up a body of expertise in how specific types of foreign convictions relate to specific types of English convictions. I stress that in the overwhelming majority of cases the conviction is accepted by the defendant but, in cases of doubt, legal advice can be sought. We accept that the process of translation of foreign convictions into UK equivalents will not always be straightforward, but we are in no doubt that it is preferable, in the interests of justice and public protection, to make the attempt rather than just simply to ignore foreign convictions. Having listened to the noble Lord, therefore, I am afraid that I cannot agree with him. We are aware of our obligations under the ECHR, but we believe that Schedule 15 is appropriate, as is Clause 128.