MAGISTRATES' COURTS BILL [H.L.] (Hansard, 18 June 1952)

§ THE LORD CHANCELLOR (LORD SIMONDS)
My Lords, as this is a Consolidation Bill and will be referred to the Joint Committee on Consolidation Bills, with your Lordships' approval I will adopt the usual course and do no more than formally move the Second Reading.

LORD MERTHYR
My Lords, I should like to say a few words in welcoming this Bill on behalf of all those who practise in the courts, and of magistrates and their clerks. It will be a great help and a great relief to all those people to have an Act of Parliament of this kind to assist them, because up to now they have had to depend too much on a series of Acts dating back for more than a century. I understand that this Bill is the product of most valuable work undertaken by a Committee presided over by the noble Lord, Lord Llewellin. I am sure that we ought to express our grateful thanks to the noble Lord and his Committee for that most valuable work.
There is one further point about which I should like to ask for a little more information. There is no doubt a good answer, and it is probably my fault for not knowing it; but I confess that it is not apparent to me at the moment. I see in this Bill no reference to the procedure under the Justice of the Peace Act, 1360, which enables a man to be ordered to find sureties for his good be- 344 haviour, even though he has committed no offence. That Act is still sometimes used and is of no small value upon occasion. I am curious to know—although I am sure there is a good reason —why there is no reference in this Bill to that procedure.
I also notice that in the Repeal Schedule (which is often one of the most interesting parts of these Bills of a legal nature) large sections of well-known Acts of Parliament are repealed, but that other sections—in some cases very small ones —remain. Of course, much of the value of the repeal is lost if it is not all-embracing, and if some portions of these old Acts of Parliament remain and, therefore, have to be studied and known by those who work in the courts. Even parts of the Criminal Justice Act, 1948, are repealed by this Bill, but other parts remain. I should like to ask whether it is a fact that other Consolidation Bills are in contemplation which will clean up the remaining parts of some of these Acts of Parliament. If so, I am sure that they will be doubly welcome. It may be, for instance, that there is to be a Bill to consolidate other branches of the law relating to indictable offences. I should like to say once again of what great value this Bill will be to all those whom it concerns, and how grateful they will be for all the work which has been done upon it.

§ LORD LLEWELLIN
My Lords, I do not know whether it is proper for me to say anything on this matter. It is true that I was Chairman of the Departmental Committee of whose labours this Bill is the product. In regard to the point just raised by the noble Lord, Lord Merthyr, we were, of course, consolidating only such parts of the Statute Law as concerns the procedure of magistrates courts. For that reason we had to leave out of the Repeal Schedule anything appertaining to courts of assize, quarter sessions or courts which try indictable offences of that kind. I think that is the reason why some parts of those Statutes were left and other parts repealed.

§ THE LORD CHANCELLOR
My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend Lord Merthyr, for he has done something which it was my intention to do, and I am afraid that I failed: that was to offer 345 on behalf of all your Lordships—as I am sure you would wish me to—our thanks to the noble Lord, Lord Llewellin, for the very valuable work that he and his Committee have done. He has also been good enough to answer one question in the speech of the noble Lord, Lord Merthyr. With regard to the question which the noble Lord, Lord Merthyr, asked me, about whether there was in contemplation any further consolidation of matters relating to the criminal law, I just do not recall whether that is so. On the Statute Law Revision Committee we have a long programme, and have no doubt that in due course other parts of the criminal law will be consolidated. I cannot say now exactly what dates are in our programme.