§ [Nos. 15–18]
§ Clause 27, page 15, line 31, at end insert ("either (i)")
§ Clause 27, page 15, line 34, after ("premises") insert ("and that their inspection is likely to disclose evidence of the commission of an offence under this Act")
§ Clause 27, page 15, line 34, after ("or") insert ("(ii)")
§ Clause 27, page 15, line 45, at end insert ("and it might defeat the object of the entry to await his return")
§ LORD WINTERBOTTOMMy Lords, with the leave of the House, I beg to move that this House doth agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 15, 16, 17 and 18. These four Amendments are linked and could conveniently be taken together. Their effect is to narrow the range of circumstances in which a magistrate may issue a warrant under subsection (3) of Clause 27 authorising an enforcement officer to enter or force an entry into premises. These Amendments would, I hope, meet the objections that the noble Lord, Lord Airedale, saw to the original subsection.
The first three Amendments would alter paragraph (a) so that before issuing a warrant a magistrate would have to be satisfied that there was reasonable ground to believe either that the inspection of goods, books or documents on the premises would be likely to disclose evidence of the commission of an offence under the Bill; or, as in the present provision, that an offence has been, is being, or is about to be committed on the premises. This would mean that there would be no power to issue a warrant when there was no suspicion of an offence.
The fourth Amendment would modify paragraph (b)(ii) in respect of the temporary absence of the occupier of the premises. It would mean that a magistrate could not issue a warrant just because the conditions of paragraph (a) were satisfied and the occupier was away for a time. He would also have to be satisfied that it would not be reasonable to wait for the occupier to return because to do so might defeat the object of the entry.
§ Moved, That this House doth agree with the Commons in the said Amendments.—(Lord Winterbottom.)
§ LORD AIREDALEMy Lords, I welcome these Amendments very much indeed. This subsection in its original form would have operated very harshly. I was not able to get an Amendment accepted when the Bill was before the House initially. I was so concerned about the matter that I wrote a letter to The Times about it, which they published. If it was as a result of that that these Amendments have been put down and incorporated into the Bill, it is as much to the credit of The Times as anybody else that this has happened. Newspapers come in for a great deal of criticism—even The Times gets criticised sometimes. When a newspaper ventilates a grievance which leads to that grievance being remedied, it is only right that credit should be given.
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.