Law Commission Bill [Lords]

I am grateful for the support that has been shown both for the Bill and for the Law Commission. It was established in the 1960s to ensure that citizens were the subject of clear, accessible and up-to-date law. Although a considerable number of its reports have been implemented over the years, there is great frustration that too many have had to wait too long to be implemented and that they have lain mouldering away on Government shelves, and that some have failed to be implemented at all. I gave some examples in Committee on 8 July. For the sake of brevity, I shall repeat only my favourite now. Hon. Members may remember a homo-erotic poem about Christ published in the Gay Times to which Mary Whitehouse took exception. As a result, a prosecution for blasphemous libel was taken out. The whole team at Gay Times were prosecuted. The editor was fined and given a nine-month suspended prison sentence. The case went all the way up to the House of Lords and failed, but the House of Lords made it perfectly clear that it felt that the law was very unsatisfactory. As a result, in 1985, the Law Commission was charged with reporting back on the issue, but its recommendations failed to be implemented until 23 years later, in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. The purpose of the Bill is to address that problem. We need to find more ways of increasing the momentum for reform, so there are two main provisions in the Bill. The first is the hair shirt clause, which requires the Lord Chancellor to report to Parliament on why reports have not been implemented and what plans he has for doing so. Opposition Members suggest that that kind of accountability can be achieved by early-day motions or parliamentary questions, but we need a systematic approach. It is never comfortable to write such reports and that annual discomfort should bring the Government to heel on the matter. They would need to go on record and say why they have not implemented a report or why they are still considering one. The Lord Chancellor, the Minister responsible for the Law Commission, would come to this place to do that. The second major provision in the Bill would give statutory support to the protocol. Opposition Members state that that is "trendy", but I make no apology if it is. The protocol is being devised by the Law Commission and the Government, with the intention to provide a more effective collaborative approach to desirable law reform, and to increase the likelihood of the commission's work being relevant and appropriately implemented. The hon. Members for Christchurch (Mr. Chope) and for Shipley (Philip Davies) tabled amendments aimed at tightening my proposals. I have some sympathy with those amendments and certainly agree with the spirit in which they have been tabled, which is one of support for the Law Commission—an attempt is being made to ensure that the power and authority of the commission is increased. It is important for the commission to succeed in its statutory task of keeping the law accessible and up-to-date, but there is a risk of losing the entire Bill if the proposals are tightened. The Bill started in the other place. Therefore, any amendments at this stage will mean that the Bill will have to return there. The risk is that it will fail because of timetable considerations. Passing the Bill without amendment today will mean that it can go on to receive Royal Assent and become law.