COMMITTEE FOR JUSTICE
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
WEDNESDAY, 23 MARCH 2011
ROOM 30, PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS
Present:
Lord Morrow MLA (Chairman)
Mr Raymond McCartney MLA (Deputy Chairman)
Lord Browne MLA
Mr Thomas Buchanan MLA
Mr Paul Givan MLA
Mr Alban Maginness MLA
Mr Conall McDevitt MLA
Mr David McNarry MLA
Ms Carál Ní Chuilín MLA
Mr John O’Dowd MLA
In Attendance:
Mrs Christine Darrah (Assembly Clerk)
Mrs Roisin Donnelly (Assistant Assembly Clerk)
Mr Vincent Gribbin (Assistant Assembly Clerk)
Mr Joe Westland (Clerical Supervisor)
Mr Kevin Marks (Clerical Officer)
Apologies: Lord Empey MLA
The meeting commenced at 11.21 a.m. in public session.
1. Apologies
Apologies are detailed above.
2. Draft minutes of the meeting held on 15 March 2011
The Committee approved the draft minutes of the meeting held on 15 March 2011 .
3. Matters Arising
i. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice providing information on equal pay issues in relation to Department of Justicestaff and PSNI support staff arising from the briefing at the meeting on 15 March 2011.
ii. The Committee noted correspondence from the Committee for Finance and Personnel providing a copy of a letter outlining the role of the Department of Finance and Personnel in the equal pay claims of PSNI support staff.
iii. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice providing information on issues raised during the briefing on the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime at the meeting on 10 March 2011.
4. Committee for Justice Draft Legacy Report.
The Committee considered the draft End of Session/Legacy Report covering the period April 2010 to March 2011.
Question: “That the Committee is content with the title page, Committee remit, powers and membership as drafted put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content with the Introduction and Visits section as drafted put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content with the Key Activities, Outputs and Achievements section as drafted put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content with the section outlining the Committee’s approach to its work as drafted put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content with the section outlining issues and matters that the incoming Committee for Justice may wish to consider as drafted put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content with Appendices 1 and 2 put and agreed to.”
Question: “That the Committee is content for the End of Session/Legacy Report to be published on the Assembly website put and agreed to.”
The Committee considered a draft press release on the work it had undertaken since its establishment in April 2010.
Agreed: The Committee agreed the press release as drafted.
5. Briefing by Organised Crime Taskforce Agencies
Simon Rogers, Head of Protection and Organised Crime Division, Department of Justice, Chief Superintendent Roy McComb, Head of Organised Crime, PSNI, Bob Lauder, Deputy Director, Scotland and Northern Ireland, Serious and Organised Crime Agency and Derek Dubery, Senior Investigating Officer, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs joined the meeting at 11.32 a.m.
11.42 a.m. Mr Givan joined the meeting.
11.50 a.m. Mr McNarry joined the meeting.
11.56 a.m. Mr Givan left the meeting.
The representatives of the Organised Crime Taskforce Agencies briefed the Committee on the work of the Organised Crime Taskforce. A question and answer session followed covering a range of issues including; current and future threats facing Northern Ireland from organised crime gangs; the number of crime gangs and individuals operating in Northern Ireland; the links of organised crime gangs with paramilitary groups and other crime organisations; the need for co-operation with other countries to tackle the threats; the scale and nature of human trafficking; and the need to inform and educate the public to change attitudes in relation to organised crime activities.
The meeting was suspended at 12.14 p.m. to enable Members to take part in the Final Stage of the Justice Bill in the plenary session.
The meeting resumed at 1.05 p.m. in public session.
Present: Lord Morrow MLA (Chairman)
Mr Raymond McCartney MLA (Deputy Chairman)
Mr Alban Maginness MLA
Mr Conall McDevitt
Mr David McNarry MLA
Ms Carál Ní Chuilín MLA
Mr John O’Dowd MLA
In Attendance: Mrs Christine Darrah (Assembly Clerk)
Mrs Roisin Donnelly (Assistant Assembly Clerk)
Mr Vincent Gribbin (Assistant Assembly Clerk)
Mr Joe Westland (Clerical Supervisor)
Mr Kevin Marks (Clerical Officer)
The representatives of the Organised Crime Taskforce Agencies continued answering questions from Members on issues including the difficulty in providing figures for the numbers of individuals being exploited by organised crime gangs; the level of Criminal assets receive; the extent of the involvement of the Triads in organised crime in Northern Ireland; and when the brothel closure power contained in the Policing and Crime Act 2009 would be commenced.
The Chairman thanked the officials for the briefing and they left the meeting.
6. Briefing by Representatives of the Bar Council on the Remuneration of defence representation in the Crown Court
Adrian Colton, Chair of the Bar Council and Mark Mulholland, Vice-chair of the Bar Council, joined the meeting at 1.39 p.m.
The representatives of the Bar Council briefed the Committee on their concerns over the nature of Bar Council’s engagement with the Department of Justice on proposals for changes to remuneration of defence representation in the Crown Court and answered questions on issues including the Bar Council’s latest engagement with the Department of Justice, the status of the proposed Statutory Rule: The Legal Aid for Crown Court Proceedings (Costs) (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2011; the need for proper costings of the Department’s proposals and the likely impact of the Statutory Rule if enacted.
The Chairman thanked Adrian Colton and Mark Mulholland for the briefing and they left the meeting.
The Committee discussed the handling of the Statutory Rule by the Department and expressed concern regarding the approach being adopted to lay the Rule just before the end of the mandate with an operational date before the next Assembly and Committee would be in place.
Agreed: The Committee agreed to write to the Minister of Justice to outline its concerns regarding the approach being adopted in relation to the laying of this Statutory Rule and request that an operational date in the new Assembly mandate should apply to provide the next Justice Committee with an opportunity to consider whether it was content to approve the Rule of not.
7. Chairman’s Business
i. The Chairman advised Members that following a meeting he had had with the Chairman of the Assembly and Executive Review Committee, Mr Spratt, to discuss the appropriate Committee to take forward the review of Judicial appointments, the Assembly and Executive Review Committee had written advising that it was of the view that responsibility for the review should transfer to the Committee for Justice.
Agreed: The Committee agreed with this approach and the next Justice Committee should liaise with the next Assembly and Executive Review Committee on the matter.
ii. The Committee noted correspondence from the Minister of Justice expressing his thanks for the assistance provided by the Committee to him and his Department during the first year of the devolution of policing and justice.
iii. The Chairman sought the agreement of Members to approve the minutes of today’s meeting given that it was the last meeting of the current mandate.
Agreed: The Committee agreed that it was content for the Chairman to approve the minutes of the meeting.
8. Correspondence
i. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding initiatives by the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunal Service in relation to fine default in Northern Ireland.
ii. The Committee noted correspondence from NIACRO regarding the Legislative Consent Motion in relation to the Protection of Freedoms Bill.
iii. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding the Holyland Intervention Mapping Report 2005-2009.
iv. The Committee considered correspondence from Dr O’Hara of the Western Health and Social Services Trust regarding the impact of Attention Deficit Disorder in the Criminal Justice System.
Agreed: The Committee agreed to forward the correspondence to the Minister of Justice for his consideration.
v. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding the publication of a summary of the responses to the consultation on a Sentencing Guidelines mechanism.
vi. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding the Publication of Research and Statistical Bulletin No. 2/11 : “Perceptions of Crime: Findings from the 2009/10 Northern Ireland Crime Survey”.
vii. The Committee noted correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding a complaint made by an individual about various Justice Agencies.
A copy of the following items of correspondence received from the Department of Justice just prior to the start of the Committee meeting was circulated to Members:
i. Correspondence from the Department of Justice providing information on the Draft Budget 2011 – 15 in relation to the Police Rehabilitation and Retraining Trust.
ii. Correspondence from the Department of Justice regarding the results of the consultation on its spending and savings plans for 2011 – 2015.
iii. Correspondence from the Department of Justice on proposals to increase the jurisdictional limit of the county courts in Northern Ireland – review of scale costs.
iv. Correspondence from the Minister of Justice responding to issues raised by the Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland and the Royal Black Institution on parades.
v. Correspondence from the Minister of Justice providing details of current reviews and the estimated costs involved.
vi. Correspondence from the Department of Justice providing information on the following court rules currently not subject to Assembly Procedure:
- Magistrates’ Courts (Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995) (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2011
- Magistrates’ Courts (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2011
- Magistrates’ Courts (Criminal Justice) Children (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2011
- County Court (Amendment) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2011
vii. Correspondence from the Department of Justice enclosing the Information Handbook for Adult Victims of Rape and Sexual Assault in Northern Ireland.
Given the every late arrival of this correspondence Members did not have an opportunity to read it and the Committee was unable to consider any of it.
9. Briefing by the Department of Justice on the Coroners and Justice Act 2009
Gareth Johnston, Head of Justice Strategy Division, Tom Haire, Head of Criminal Law Branch, Justice Strategy Division and Susan Nicholson, Criminal Law Branch, joined the meeting at 2.27 p.m.
The officials briefed the Committee on the proposals by the Minister of Justice to commence three provisions of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 to ensure that convictions in other EU member states are taken account of in criminal proceedings in Northern Ireland, to make changes to the law on murder and infanticide and to Introduce Investigation Anonymity Orders (IAOs) and answered questions from Members on issues including whether there were any resource or staffing implications.
The Chairman thanked the officials for the briefing and they left the meeting.
10. Any Other Business
None.
2.44 p.m. The meeting was adjourned.
Lord Morrow of Clogher Valley MLA
Chairman, Committee for Justice
23 March 2011
15 March 11 / Menu
