Serious Crime Bill [Lords]

Well, there is an issue in the way in which civil orders can be used for crime prevention. The hon. Gentleman is right to highlight the fact that the orders can be used in two separate ways. One is almost as a post-bail or a post-conviction prevention order, in which the intention is almost to get someone back behind bars as soon as possible by virtue of a breach. That is a criticism that has been levelled at some of the other civil orders that the Government have introduced. The other is use of the order before any criminal conviction has been obtained, and that raises issues of appropriateness, especially when the criminal law could be applied and some sort of criminal sanction invoked. That is a point that we will debate in greater detail when we reach serious crime prevention orders later. New clause 1(6) states:"““The tests for making or varying a serious crime prevention order””—" it then lists various sections—"““do not operate in relation to an order so far as the order contains terms of the kind envisaged by subsections (4) and (5) above.””" In other words, monitoring should occur. The particular parts of the Bill that are being carved out by that provision are those to do with preventive measures. For example, I draw the Minister's attention to clause 1(1)(b), which provides that the court may make an order if"““it has reasonable grounds to believe that the order would protect the public by preventing, restricting or disrupting involvement by the person in serious crime in England and Wales.””" In other words, that limb—the necessity for the court to be satisfied that the order would prevent crime—would be carved out by new clause 1(6). That is a bit odd, if the intention is to prevent, rather than to punish. That is an important point for how the orders are used and, in terms of the European convention on human rights, to ensure that the Bill is not construed as providing for punishment. It is essential that the orders should be preventive, not punishment, but new clause 1(6) would take out all the relevant provisions on orders that will have a monitor granted to them. That is perverse and bizarre and, when the Minister winds up, I trust that he will give some explanation of it. The way in which the provision is drafted suggests that it may also apply to the whole of the serious crime prevention order, rather than just to the monitoring aspects. That would make the orders very wide and draconian in their application in the particular aspects. The late inclusion of this wide-ranging new clause raises many questions, and it has not had proper scrutiny and debate.