Standing Committee B
Thursday 12 February 1998
(Morning)
[Mr. Barry Jones in the Chair]
10.30 am
The Chairman: Before we proceed I have two announcements. First, there is a money resolution in connection with the Bill. Copies are available in the Room. Secondly, I remind members of the Committee that adequate notice should be given of amendments. As a general rule neither I nor Miss Widdecombe intend to call starred amendments.
Clause 1
The Police Authority for Northern Ireland
The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Mr. Adam Ingram): I beg to move amendment No. 52, in page 1, line 8, at end insert--
`(1A) Section 19 of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973 (discrimination by public authorities) shall apply to the Police Authority.'.
The Chairman: With this it will be convenient to take the following amendments: No. 16, in clause 2, page 1, line 10, leave out `the' and insert
`an impartial, efficient and effective'.
No. 18, in clause 2, page 1, line 18, after `is' insert `impartial,'.
No. 26, in clause 2, page 1, line 18, at end insert
`and free from political interference and direction in the discharge of its duties'.
Government amendment No. 54.
Mr. Ingram: As I said at our previous sitting, I am aware of concerns about the issue of the impartiality of the Royal Ulster Constabulary. That awareness is in the context of the amendments to clause 2 that hon. Members have tabled; I suggested that I would consider ways of arriving at a different, more all-encompassing way of dealing with the matter, taking account of the issues that have given rise to the amendments. That is the purpose of Government amendments Nos. 52 and 54.
As hon. Members know, the Government intend to issue a statement of policing principles, to include reference to impartiality. Copies of the guiding principles were sent yesterday to all members of the Committee, but more are available this morning for any hon. Members who have not yet received them. The guiding principles are not set in stone; the document is a draft and hon. Members will have a chance to consider them in more detail under clause 37.
They have been sent out in good time for that purpose. However, because of our present concern with the overall matter of impartiality, I thought it important to distribute them. We would welcome hon Members' views on them.
It appears that amendments No. 16, 18 and 26 are intended to put beyond doubt police officers' duty to uphold the rule of law fairly and even-handedly. No one could disagree with that aim. It is worth pointing out that the fair employment, equal opportunities and race relations legislation already applies to the Royal Ulster Constabulary and to the Police Authority for Northern Ireland. The provisions deal with the way in which the relevant organisations operate their employment practices. Our debate this morning is about how the organisations relate to the wider community in the discharge of their functions.
Hon. Members want the Royal Ulster Constabulary to be impartial in political and religious terms. That can best be achieved by applying section 19 of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973 both to the authority and to officers of the Royal Ulster Constabulary and Royal Ulster Constabulary Reserve.
It might be helpful if I set out what section 19 says:
``it shall be unlawful for a Minister of the Crown, a member of the Northern Ireland Executive or other person appointed under section 8 above, the Post Office and any authority or body listed in Schedule 2 to the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967, Schedule 1 to the Parliamentary Commissioner Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 or Schedule 1 to the Commissioner for Complaints Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 to discriminate, or aid, induce or incite another to discriminate, in the discharge of functions relating to Northern Ireland against any person or class of persons on the ground of religious belief or political opinion.''
The section continues:
``The obligation to comply with subsection (1) above is a duty owed to any person who may be adversely affected by a contravention of that subsection, and any breach of that duty is actionable in Northern Ireland accordingly.''
I understand and support the principle of what Opposition Members are seeking to achieve by their amendments. However, section 19 already takes the concerns of the amendments into account and will move us forward constructively. If we proceed with amendments Nos. 16, 18 and 26, we would accomplish less of what is intended by them. That is why I have tabled Government amendments Nos. 52 and 54 to build section 19 into the Bill.
Section 19 is already a long-established and robust piece of legislation which enables individuals to seek redress through the courts. It is, however, far from certain that a broad requirement for the police to be ``impartial'' would be enforceable through the courts. The difference is between a tried and tested legal provision and testing out the concept of impartiality. There is also the possibility that that concept would fetter a constable's discretion to treat different individuals appropriately and sensitivity.
Acting impartially means treating everyone the same, regardless of other factors, for the same offence. Thus the first time offender of previous good character must be treated exactly the same as the habitual criminal. Such requirements do not serve the needs of natural justice or of society.
A good example would be an elderly person of confused mind who faces a shoplifting charge, as compared with a hardened criminal who is an organised shoplifter. If impartiality were applied, both those people would have to be treated the same. That is why the amendments' concept of impartiality would achieve a lesser result than section 19.
Section 19 will make a constable accountable to the law only where he or she treats people differently for the wrong reasons--discrimination on the grounds of religious belief or political opinion. That is why this is the best way to legislate.
Let me now turn to why I think section 19 should apply to the Police Authority. The authority has a clear duty not to discriminate on the grounds of religious belief or political opinion--no one can dispute that. That is because it has a key role in representing the community and holding the Chief Constable to account.
The provision will oblige the authority to take account of the views of all relevant bodies and individuals in determining its objectives, and in holding the Chief Constable to account for his operational decisions. Importantly, it will also provide a clear avenue of redress through the courts to anyone who feels that either the RUC or the Police Authority has failed to live up to its obligations.
I have set out the basis of the Government amendments--robust and proven legislation in the form of section 19. That will put in place the mechanisms that the Opposition are trying to achieve through their amendments, and it will put them on a stronger footing, although it does so in a slightly different way. It also imposes a duty on the Police Authority, and I have set out the reasons why it is important that the Police Authority is conditioned by the same legislation as the RUC. Accordingly, I recommend Government amendments Nos. 52 and 54 to members of the Committee and ask them not to support amendments Nos. 16, 18 and 26.
Mr. Malcolm Moss (North-East Cambridgeshire): I hope that the Committee will forgive me this morning; I have something like a frog in my throat. I just hope that I last the course.
I am grateful to the Minister for the way in which he has faced the main import of amendments Nos. 16 and 18, which stand in my name. I listened carefully to what he said and I see no problem with accepting those recommendations and both Government amendments.
However, the problem remains that people interpret legislation largely according to the way in which they understand the words in the Bill. It would therefore not be impossible to accept my amendments as well as the Government amendments. Clearly the advice that the Minister has been given is that it is easier in the courts to test the notion of impartiality via the Government amendments invoking section 19 of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973. I do not doubt that. I am not a lawyer, so I am not in a position to question it. I am sure that the Minister's advice is appropriate and correct.
At our previous sitting I referred to the activity that had taken place in relation to reform of policing in Northern Ireland. The notion of impartiality is a common thread in almost every publication and consultation of the past four or five years. It goes without saying that everyone in our society assumes that our police will be impartial, but in Northern Ireland we are dealing with a divided community and it is important to state clearly in the Bill that impartiality is a duty of the police and those associated with the police in the Province.
In his preamble to the previous Government's White Paper the Secretary of State at the time, Sir Patrick Mayhew, said:
``The tripartite structure would continue . . . The operational independence, impartiality and integrity of the police, and their freedom from partisan political control, would be reinforced.''
That theme was continued by the Labour party in its own document, which came out at a similar time.
Again, in the final paragraph of the preamble to the White Paper, the previous Secretary of State said:
``The Government's purpose in proposing the reforms detailed in this White Paper is to facilitate the provision of an efficient, effective, professional, impartial and responsive police service, accountable to the community through a strong, widely representative and open Police Authority.''
Again the word ``impartial'' comes into the reckoning, alongside the two words in the Bill--``efficient'' and ``effective''.
Under the heading ``The Key Objective'' on page 10 of the White Paper, paragraph 1.15 says:
``The underlying key objective . . . is the provision of a police service which:--
i. is fair, efficient, effective and impartial''.
Yet again we find those key words.
The Police Act (Northern Ireland) 1970, the legislation currently governing the Police Authority, defines the duties of the Police Authority, as constituted at that time, in section 1(2):
``It shall be the duty of the Police Authority to secure the maintenance of an adequate and efficient police force in Northern Ireland.''
The words ``adequate and efficient'' have been changed in the current Bill, in clause 2(3), to ``efficient and effective''.
10.45 am
The Minister referred to the difficulties that might arise in court over the definition of the words ``impartial'' and ``impartiality''. Yet the 1970 Act uses the word ``adequate''. Surely, that word would be even more difficult to define in court, and the same problem would arise with the words ``efficient and effective''.
It is not necessary to change the wording in both subsection (1) and subsection (3) of clause 2; I would be happy if just one subsection was changed. It is important that the word ``impartial'' is included in the Bill, to make it clear to both sides of the divided community in Northern Ireland that impartiality is a primary duty in the role of the police.
There should also be clear policing aims, and I am glad that the Minister has anticipated that need by sending us the list he referred to earlier this morning. We have not yet had time to study that document, but Opposition Members welcome the Minister's positive response to our concerns.
The White Paper stressed the need for impartiality. It stated that the policing aims should
``act as part of the mutually reinforcing system of safeguards for the impartiality, integrity, and proper accountability of the police service.''
Furthermore, it states that all police officers
``should be explicitly required by legislation to carry out their duties and uphold the law: impartially, without favour or affection, malice or ill will, without regard to status, gender, race, culture and tradition, religious belief, political beliefs or aspirations, and with an understanding of differing views.''
That is an excellent definition of impartiality. It is in the previous Government's White Paper and has been available to the Minister for a long time.
The White Paper went on to discuss the duties of police officers. They should treat
``all persons with courtesy, consideration and dignity, recognising the individuality and value of every person''--
and, finally--
``for the benefit of the community as a whole.''
That is a key phrase, and that is why the words ``impartial'' and ``impartiality'' are used so often in documentation related to police reform.
I am sure that the Government share the aims set out in that White Paper, and that they want them included in the Bill. I have studied the Bill, but I can find no reference to those duties of impartiality being imposed on police offiers. I would be grateful if the Minister could explain where such a reference occurs. That would help to alleviate my concern that police officers should see it as their duty--clearly stated in legislation--to be impartial at all times.
The Police Authority has a clear view on impartiality. It argues that the special policing challenges in Northern Ireland made it imperative that the police service is and is seen to be
``impartial in every aspect of the service it delivers''.
The Police Authority believes that its primary duty, which is outlined in clause 2, should be amended to require the Northern Ireland police service to be impartial, efficient and effective. The Police Authority for Northern Ireland, the previous Government, the White Paper and the results of consultation stress that the Government should show that they require the police services to be impartial. The Police Authority should ensure that the service is not only efficient and effective but impartial.
I listened carefully to the Minister. There is no problem with his amendments. But including the word ``impartial'' in one subsection of one clause on the first page of the Bill should present no problems either. Not only the Opposition but the Police Authority, and many people who participated in the consultation on the White Paper and the Bill, would welcome that.
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