Coroners and Justice Bill

I am most grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Miller of Chilthorne Domer, who moved this amendment so ably. I support it. I shall not go over the arguments again, and I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Pannick, for having added additional arguments in support. I fear that the Government may say that they want to wait for the outcome from the Chilcot review and that that might be viewed as a way, or used as a way, of avoiding this. I fear that they might say that these amendments somehow pre-empt the findings of the Chilcot review, although I am not sure that they do. I should like also to probe further a statement that the Minister made in response to one of our amendments. There was an implication that even those secret inquests might go and that there may be a risk that some inquiries could be transferred to become secret inquiries. There is, therefore, an anxiety that hearings may be held behind closed doors in slightly changed circumstances. It would be very helpful if the Minister could provide some assurance that we are not, by deleting the clauses that have been deleted, in any way jeopardising the openness of the hearings. I ask the Minister in particular to clarify when the completion of the Chilcot review is expected and whether it would be possible, if this is a concern of the Government, to put in some caveat that these amendments would be reviewed when the Chilcot review reports, so that they could be time-limited, but that those inquests that are currently on hold could proceed, even if it was decided eventually to reverse the decision that we might make with these amendments.