Speeches by Mullan.

“Let me turn to controlling cost awards in private prosecutions. We will not be opposing Government amendment (a), which introduces a requirement for consultation and an impact assessment before those powers are exercised. That welcome step reflects concerns that have been raised consistently throughout the passage of t…”

“Where we have complete agreement—this was Tracey’s original campaign, supported by Victims For Justice—is on the idea of statutory notification, which is a welcome change. I will continue to work with any and all victims, even when they do not universally agree. People working in the justice arena are used to recognisi…”

“Private prosecutions are not a marginal feature of our justice system; they are relied on by charities, specialist organisations, and in cases where the state lacks the capacity or resources to act. Charities lose up to £849 million a year to fraud, and where the system does not act, private prosecutions step in. Macmi…”

“I agree with both of them that this measure is welcome, but we should not overstate the extent to which we are delivering exactly what victims and their families asked for. As has been said, these steps forward are welcome, but in some ways they are not exactly what families asked for. Tracey’s key point throughout has…”

“Similarly, we must understand what the “interests of justice” means in reality. In what sorts of scenario does the Minister expect people to be able to apply successfully? She helpfully pointed out that there is clearly a difference in the obligations towards an ordinary member of the public, or even an MP making use o…”

“The same is true in other areas. Private prosecutions are used in intellectual property crime and shoplifting, where cases are not prioritised. In one example, public enforcement spent over £2 million and brought just a handful of charges, while private prosecutions secured over 100 convictions at a lower cost. If we m…”

“It is a pleasure to take part in this debate on the Lords message on the Victims and Courts Bill. The Bill has been debated extensively in the other place. I thank the Lords for their care and consideration in trying to improve it, as we tried to do in the Commons. Members will know that, when the Bill was last in this…”

“There will be some back and forth about who wants what elements of this scheme and in what ways, but I think the Minister was wrong to say that our focus was on it being for everybody. I have been clear from the start that our focus was also on extending the provision for victims and their families, and not for everybo…”

“Does the Minister accept that there are elements of a jury trial—not necessarily as a whole, but some elements—that are superior to a trial without a jury?”

“I have a background in healthcare. The Minister has talked about triage being led by healthcare professionals, but there is another side of healthcare where people can insist on choice. This Government have introduced Martha’s rule, where the family member can not only insist on choice, but override what the treating c…”

“Why does the Minister think it is important that some cases remain with a jury trial? What are the material differences that she sees between a jury trial and a non-jury trial that cause her to seek to allow some to continue with a jury trial?”

“The Minister said earlier, and she just said again, that it was the test recommended by the independent review. But if we are being specific, the test that was recommended was two years. The Government have made the test three years, so it is not the test that was recommended. It is important that the Minister does not…”

“Will the Minister give way on that point?”

“To use the word that the hon. Member used at the start of her intervention, it is a balance. We in the Opposition are clear that the Government have that balance wrong, which is why we oppose the measures. As I said, the Government want to have this both ways: on the one hand, when it suits them, they say that it is a …”

“Again, we talked about this before. There are degrees of fairness. Specifically on whether a defendant will get a judge who is as fair as possible in terms of representation, understanding their background and so on, I think it is less fair than a jury system. But I made it clear that other factors are given greater we…”

“Further to the intervention from the hon. Member for Bolton South and Walkden, it might be helpful to remind the Committee of the letter written by dozens of organisations representing women and girls. I was very clear that that letter actually represented women and girls as victims, but it absolutely makes the hon. La…”

“I absolutely think that we should leave the ECHR, because I do not like the mechanism that it operates under, but I absolutely support some of the rights and protections in principle that it advocates. I am struggling to see why there is a contradiction. There are lots of times when we might support elements of proposa…”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Jardine. I rise to speak in support of amendment 43, tabled in my name, and to amendments 25 and 12. Again, on this issue the Opposition and the hon. Member for Bolton South and Walkden have alighted on the same challenge or issue—the same thing we think is unfair. …”

“I beg to move amendment 40, in clause 3, page 5, line 38, at end insert— “(7) Where a court has determined in accordance with this section that a trial is to be conducted without a jury, the defendant may appeal that decision if he can demonstrate that the circumstances of their case are such that trial without a jury …”

“I rise to speak in support of amendment 40 in my name and to consider other related amendments. At this point, we are considering in more detail the allocation decisions, how they work in practice and the likely legal risks and pitfalls inherent in the new process. I will begin by laying out the process that will exist…”