Moved by
Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd
23: Clause 12, page 24, line 20, at end insert—
“(3A) After section 115A insert—
“Further provision in relation to independence of investigations
115B Further provision in relation to independence of investigations
(1) The tri-service serious crime unit must contain a victim and witness care unit, funding for which is to be made available by the Secretary of State.
(2) The Deputy Provost Marshal for serious crime must be a civilian appointment.
(3) The tri-service serious crime unit must carry out its investigations in a manner that is operationally independent of the military chain of command.
(4) The Provost Marshal for serious crime must produce a report annually to the Minister chairing the Service Justice Board, who must arrange for the report to be laid before Parliament.
(5) Before the tri-service serious crime unit is established, a Strategic Policing Board, consisting of a non-executive director (who is also a member of the Service Justice Executive Group), a retired chief constable, a recently retired senior military officer, and a retired judge, must be established to provide assurance and governance of the Provost Marshal for serious crime and the Defence Serious Crime Unit.
(6) The tri-service serious crime unit must be established by 1 April 2022.
(7) By 1 July 2022, the Provost Marshal for serious crime, Director of Service Prosecutions and Judge Advocate General must agree protocols on fatalities and ill-treatment cases.””
Member’s explanatory statement
The amendment is intended to strengthen the independence of the tri-service serious crime unit in accordance with the recommendations of the Henriques Report.