EXPENSES IN CRIMINAL APPEALS IN NORTHERN IRELAND COURT OF APPEAL (Hansard, 13 April 1994)

§ Mr. Trimble
I beg to move amendment No. 63, in page 32, leave out lines 17 and 18 and insert— '(3) This section shall apply to any decision or review of the Master (Taxing Office) made after 25th July 1991.'
I apologise to the hon. Member for Berwick and East Lothian (Mr. Home Robertson), whom I had to jump over to reach my seat in time.
The amendment is a small point, concerning costs in criminal appeals in Northern Ireland. I am delighted that the Government introduced what is now clause 44, because it emerged some six years ago in Northern Ireland that there was a serious gap in our legislation. There had been a provision for the assessment of costs in criminal appeals and a provision for appeals from that assessment. However, as a result of what was a legislative slip up in 1978, the right of appeal disappeared. That was not realised until 1988, in the Weir and Higgins' application. It became clear in 1988 that the right of appeal had been lost.
The obvious thing to do was remedy the omission. I am glad that the Government have done so by introducing clause 44. When they introduced that clause in Committee, I thought that the matter was uncontroversial. At that time, I was not aware that a judicial review was proceeding through the courts in Northern Ireland to test the right to appeal. That judicial review, which was heard by Mr. Justice Kerr and is currently on appeal, was funded by the Law Society of Northern Ireland because of its desire to test the issue and to try to establish a right of appeal.
In those circumstances, and because the mistake was not discovered until 1988, it is not unreasonable to ask for the legislation conferring the right to appeal to be made 292 retrospective. That is all my amendment does. I have been told that only four or five cases would be affected. I appreciate that there may be expense involved.
In a sense, it would be better to date the retrospection back to 1988. I took advice from the solicitors involved in the case that is currently proceeding through the Northern Ireland courts and the date that is provided in the amendment relates to that. It is not a major issue; it affects only a handful of cases. However, it is a matter of providing a remedy that was lost as a result of what appears to have been a slip-up in the legislation. Now that we are remedying that slip-up, I see no reason why the amendment should not be made retrospective, so that people should not suffer a loss as a result of what was basically a mistake made in this House.

§ Mr. Maclean
Amendment No. 63 is intended to give retrospective effect to the provisions in clause 44, which confer new rights of appeal against assessments of criminal legal aid costs by the taxing master in the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal. However, it does so in a highly selective manner, which I understand is designed to meet the concerns of a firm of solicitors aggrieved by the master's assessment of the costs in a particular case.
The Government do not accept that it is either necessary or practical to give retrospective effect to the new appeal rights conferred by clause 44. The present arrangements have been in operation for at least 15 years. It is worth remembering that, under the current system, both branches of the legal profession have the benefit of a full, expert and independent consideration of their entitlement to remuneration out of public funds.
The House will realise that it is both unrealistic and unnecessary to suggest that the masters or the High Court should now be required to reinvestigate and review assessments carried out over many years, and we cannot see any justification for affording special and preferential treatment to the costs assessed in any particular case.
The hon. Gentleman will know that on many occasions in Committee I welcomed his wise words, and was able to say that the Government agreed with him and would put into law his desires and his amendment. Unfortunately, this is one of the rare occasions when I must disappoint the hon. Gentleman, and I hope that he understands.

§ Mr. Trimble
I do not wish to detain the House. I have made my point, and I do not wish to divide the House on the amendment. Therefore, I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment.