My Lords, this amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes of Cumnock, would make it an offence to assault a worker who is required to enforce or comply with the Licensing
Act 2003, either in the course of that worker’s employment or by reason of that worker’s employment. The proposed new offence would be triable either way with a maximum penalty on indictment of two years’ imprisonment, or an unlimited fine, or both.
The issue has been well described by the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, and by other noble Lords during the debate: those who are in the position of selling alcohol can find themselves in a highly vulnerable position and can be the victims of serious assaults. The amendment was debated in some detail in Committee. As he told the House, the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, and the noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, met with me—Lord Faulks—to discuss the issue further. We were joined by the general secretary of the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers, and I benefited greatly from their analysis of the problem and the need, as they saw it, for action. As the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, said, I made it clear that the Government remain at the moment unconvinced of the need for a new offence of assaulting workers selling alcohol, although I said that I would consider any additional evidence and data on that point. I remain in that position and the Government remain aware that there is concern about this, but I must make it clear now, as I made it clear then, that I do not wish to accept this amendment or to return to the matter in the course of the Bill’s progression.
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The House will join me in condemning these assaults, but in our view there are sufficient offences on the statute book which make it clear that such behaviour is unacceptable, and sufficient penalties to sanction it. As I made clear in Committee, the only offences of assault on members of specific groups are those of assault on a police constable in the execution of his or her duty, and of assault on an immigration officer. One could single out all sorts of other public servants who are potentially vulnerable and do not have a specific offence to protect them, such as those working in A&E on a Saturday night. Creating a new offence of assault on workers selling alcohol would single out this type of assault as the only one meriting a specific offence, alongside assaults on these public servants, but I see no justification either for singling out workers selling alcohol as the only other occupational group meriting a specific assault offence or for making such an offence either way, with a maximum penalty of two years, as opposed to the six-month maximum penalty for common assaults generally and for the specific assault offences that I have referred to.
Those calling for a new offence of assault on workers selling alcohol argue that the police and CPS decide not to prosecute in many such cases, and that, when offenders are convicted, sentencing is too lenient. However, as the House will be well aware, investigation and prosecution of offences is a matter for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, which are, of course, independent. Whatever offences might have been committed, it is for them to decide whether and how to investigate an incident or prosecute a crime. However, the code on the basis of which Crown prosecutors make those decisions indicates that a prosecution is more likely to be in the public interest,
“if the offence has been committed against a victim who was at the time a person serving the public”.
That falls four-square within the concerns expressed, which includes a worker enforcing the Licensing Act.
We are also in this country rightly proud of the independence of our judiciary. In sentencing, judges generally must follow sentencing guidelines, which the House will recall specify that when an assault is committed against someone providing a service to the public, which includes someone selling alcohol, this is an aggravating factor and so should result in a higher sentence within the current maximum. With regard to sentencing, I should like to clarify a point I made during the Committee debate regarding the law officers’ power to refer apparently unduly lenient sentences to the Court of Appeal. I should have added that this scheme applies to indictable-only offences and a limited number of triable either way offences, specified in the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Reviews of Sentencing) Order 2006, as amended. For instance, a sentence for grievous bodily harm could be referred, but not one for common assault.
In conclusion, while I strongly condemn assaults on anyone who comes into contact with the public as part of their work, as I am sure all noble Lords do, and am sympathetic to some of the positions that those who sell alcohol to the public find themselves in late at night, when they may be on their own and therefore vulnerable, I have to repeat what I said in Committee. Creating a new either way offence is not the right way to combat violent behaviour against those enforcing or complying with the Licensing Act 2003. The noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, has served the cause of those who find themselves in this position, of USDAW, which represents its members effectively, and of all of us in bringing this issue to the attention of a wider public. The House is grateful to him. However, notwithstanding the intention that he evinced earlier in this debate to test the opinion of the House, I hope that he will be persuaded to accept that he has already achieved a great deal. He has brought this amendment to the House’s attention—indeed, to the attention of the Ministry of Justice. He has served the cause of those who find themselves in a vulnerable position and of the union that supports their interests. I hope that he will be persuaded to withdraw his amendment.