Irish in Britain has been contacted by lawyers about a disturbing piece of legislation going through Westminster that could begin to unravel all the positive changes introduced in the aftermath of the release of the Birmingham Six.
The Anti–social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill that gets its final hearing in the House of Commons on 14–15 October appears on the face of it to deal with anti–social behaviour, but there are other provisions that Home Office minsters have tacked onto the core proposals beneath the radar of public scrutiny.
Clause 143 of the Bill is described as a simplification of the law. Yet its impact would be to reverse the burden of proof and put the onus on the individual to prove themselves to be innocent. A miscarriage of justice would be categorised as such ‘if and only if the new or newly discovered fact shows beyond reasonable doubt that the person was innocent of the offence‘
Minister Damian Green MP says he is clarifying the law, because courts have interpreted the words ‘miscarriage of justice’in different ways. The Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas says that clause 143 will not clarify the law but change it significantly to the detriment of all those who have fought wrongful conviction and been released by the courts.
In written evidence to the committee considering the Bill in its early stages, the human rights group, JUSTICE stated that none of the ground–breaking Irish cases such as the Birmingham Six, Guildford Four, Maguire Seven or Judith Ward would satisfy the proposed ‘innocence test’. After cruelly serving the best part of their lives in prison for crimes they did not commit, they would then have been denied compensation and never cleared their names.
At the West Belfast Festival in August, guest speaker Jeremy Corbyn MP, himself a champion of the Guildford Four, responded to questions from the floor and agreed to support an amendment to the Bill. The suggested wording (see below) would , leave out “the person was innocent of the offence”and instead insert ““no reasonable court properly directed as to the law, could convict on the evidence now to be considered.”
For the Irish in Britain, the memory of attempts to discredit victims of miscarriages of justice will be all–to–familiar. We would urge members to bring this issue to the attention of their own MPs
Overview
143 Compensation for miscarriages of justice
(1) In Section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (compensation for miscarriages of justice) after subsection (1) there is inserted:
“(1ZA) For the purposes of subsection (1) there has been a miscarriage of justice in relation to a person convicted of a criminal offence in England and Wales or, in a case where (6H) applies, Northern Ireland, if and only if the new or newly discovered fact shows beyond reasonable doubt that the person was innocent of the offence (and references in the rest of this Part to a miscarriage of justice are to be construed accordingly).”
(2) Subsection (1ZA) of section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 has effect in relation to:
(a) Any application for compensation made under subsection (2) of the section on or after the day on which this section comes into force, and
(b) Any application for compensation made before that day in relation to which the question whether there is a right to compensation has not been finally determined before that day by the Secretary of State under subsection (3) of that section
The amendment which Liberty is suggesting is as follows:
Part 12, clause 143, page 115, line 26, leave out “the person was innocent of the offence”and insert “no reasonable court properly directed as to the law, could convict on the evidence now to be considered.
UPDATE (20 Ocotber 2013)
Read the extracts from the Hansard transcript of the Opposition debate here (15 October 2013)
Jennie McShannon, CEO of Irish in Britain said: “I believe the Home Office proposal to move the goalposts for the victims of injustice would fly in the face of the lessons learned from the experience of the Birmingham Six, Guildford Four and other wrongful convictions associated with the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
Last week, Irish in Britain issued a briefing and in the House of Commons, MPs set out the case against the proposal very effectively. The key vote will come in the House of Lords that starts its deliberations on 29 October. I have spoken with Fr. Gerry McFlynn of the Irish Commission for Prisoners Overseas and we urge supporters and Irish community groups to write to Members of the House of Lords asking them to attend the debate and cast their vote against this new measure.”