Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Bill

moved Amendment No. 38:"Page 24, line 32, at end insert ““and shall have the right to contact a legal representative and his embassy or high commission at any time during that period””" The noble Lord said: My Lords, the amendment deals with what is appropriate in an arrest or a detention. The clause, although it now sits in the ““Information”” part of the Bill, was introduced with other amendments on terrorism, which are now Clauses 7, 51 to 55. It provides new powers to detain embarking passengers who are not British citizens for up to 12 hours and to establish the person’s identity, compliance with conditions of leave and whether return to the UK is prohibited or restricted. It also applies to all non-British citizens who are embarking passengers, not just those considered to pose a national security risk. We have tabled the amendment because of a discussion that took place in the other place involving Mrs Gillan, who asked the Minister whether he would comment on the individual’s ability to contact a legal adviser, or his embassy or High Commission, during the period of detention. Mr McNulty replied:"““Before the 12 hours are up, there will be no right to legal representation and none of the other rights afforded by PACE. It is not an arrest for a criminal offence. It is detention under the administrative powers of immigration legislation. If it goes beyond 12 hours, the legal rights and powers under PACE will kick in, but not before””." The Minister also sought to justify this clause on the basis that it was better to have power to detain an embarking passenger than to arrest him. I quote again:"““Currently, we are able to take all that information from someone only if they are arrested. Clearly, we do not want to arrest everybody . . . In that regard, having the facility, which is all that the two new clauses propose, to establish beyond doubt a person’s identity as they are leaving and to take a record of that by biometrics is a more than appropriate halfway house””.—[Official Report, Commons Standing Committee E, 27/10/05; cols. 308-10.]" The point that I make is that arrest is unpleasant but it carries legal safeguards on the right for representation. The clause envisages continuous detention for a period of up to 12 hours. It is unlikely that anyone would realise that the embarking passenger was being detained. They would not be allowed to tell anyone unless the clause is amended. Many other countries follow the type of legislation that we enact in this country. I would hate to think of somebody being detained for a period of up to 12 hours for no reason other than to seek information and at the same time being denied any right of representation whatever. In that respect, I beg to move.