Coroners and Justice Bill

I turn now to the amendments that relate to the membership of the sentencing council as set out in Schedule 13 to the Bill. There are five government amendments that I wish to speak to briefly, and I will do my best to respond to the other amendments in this group later in the debate. The first government amendment, Amendment 187BA, provides that the deputy chair of the council should be appointed from the judicial members. The proposals in the Bill make clear that the chair of the council should be a member of the judiciary. This is simply to ensure that all levels of the judiciary can have confidence that the guidelines are created and issued with the endorsement of experienced judicial members. The one specific role of the deputy is to chair the council in the absence of the chairing member. On reflection, the Government consider that this function should also fall to a judicial member to ensure full confidence by the judiciary in the work of the council. Amendment 187BB introduces greater flexibility in the appointment of the judicial members. The amendment removes the need for a set number of judicial members at each level of the judiciary and replaces it with a less restrictive requirement that there should be representation from each of the main levels of the judiciary. This amendment means that it is open to the Lord Chief Justice, in appointing the eight judicial members, to decide what the appropriate number for each level of the judiciary should be, subject to a requirement that there be at least one magistrate, one district judge and one circuit judge. The last substantive government amendment, Amendment 188AA, creates a new post, that of president of the sentencing council. The president of the sentencing council will be, ex officio, the Lord Chief Justice. The president is not a member of the council and does not chair the council. The Gage working group made clear that it considered that role too demanding on the time of the Lord Chief Justice. The Government recognise, however, that the Lord Chief Justice as the head of the judiciary in England and Wales and president of the Court of Appeal Criminal Division should be associated in some way with a body that produces guidance to all levels of the judiciary. This new role of president allows the Lord Chief Justice to be associated with the council and to attend and speak at the council, but does not require him to be involved in the day-to-day running of the council. The nature of this amendment has necessitated some discussion with the Lord Chief Justice, the noble and learned Lord, Lord Judge. While the policy aspects of legislative proposals are for Parliament to decide, the Lord Chief Justice has confirmed that he ought to undertake this role. Amendments 187AA and 188AB are consequential upon the main amendments. I beg to move.