Terrorism (Northern Ireland) Bill

We discussed this matter in Committee. The official Opposition have some sympathy with the point made by the hon. Member for Montgomeryshire (Lembit Öpik) and we have had various discussions about it. I raised the point about unanimity in Committee although we did not discuss it much at that stage. We can see some difficulty with it. If there was a requirement for unanimity and there was a two-to-one vote in favour of the guilt of the person before the court, the majority verdict would obviously be guilty but the person would presumably be released. If there were no requirement for unanimity, I foresee further problems. If there was a two-to-one vote, there might be questions about which judge voted which way. Were they Unionist, loyalist, nationalist, Protestant or Catholic? The initial appointment of the judges could also lead to difficulties. The number three does not divide equally, which is why it was chosen.