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Bribery Bill [HL]

That is the one to which my noble friend Lady Whitaker referred whereas I am looking at the Joint Committee that reported last year. It is from that committee’s report that I quoted paragraph 203. Of course we have to consider the authorisation path but we think that it would too burdensome, in the best sense of that word, for a busy Secretary of State if they are to do the job properly. It would take up too much of his or her time to have to make decisions on every possible case of bribery under Clause 1. A better, more transparent way is to put the offence in the way we have and to have the defence in Clause 12. When a prosecutor looks to see whether a prosecution should or should not go ahead, he will consider the defence in Clause 12 and then make his or her decision. Those are the grounds on which we, on balance, have come to the view that our Clause 12 is to be preferred. I know that its existence has tempered what has otherwise been a warm welcome for the rest of the Bill. I have to remind myself that the Bill has received a warm welcome generally. Indeed, I think the noble Lord, Lord Williamson, described it as a "love fest" or something like that, at Second Reading. Today has been a strange love fest but it is perhaps good for the soul. However—this is a serious point—in relation to the Bill as a whole, the Committee should be in no doubt about the importance that the Government attach to this clause. We acknowledge that the definition of a law enforcement agency is potentially too wide and I have already undertaken—I do so again—to look at that aspect of the Bill. We remain firmly of the view that the defence is needed and fully justified. Today, inevitably, the clause will be agreed, but I hope I have made noble Lords more content about the existence of Clause 12.