§ Lieut. - Colonel Bromley - Davenportasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will, during this Session, introduce legislation to amend the Criminal Justice Act of 1948 to give the Court of Criminal Appeal the power to order a new trial.
§ Sir D. Maxwell FyfeMy noble Friend the Lord Chancellor and I have decided to set up a Departmental Committee to inquire into this matter. Lord Tucker has been good enough to agree to act as Chairman, and the other members are:
- The Right Hon. Sir Travers Humphreys, a former Judge of the High Court of Justice;
- Mr. R. F. Levy, Queen's Counsel;
- Mr. John Bass, M.B.E., Junior Prosecuting
- Counsel at the Central Criminal Court;
- Sir Theobald Mathew, K.B.E., M.C., the
- Director of Public Prosecutions;
- Mr. Noel Leigh Taylor, M.B.E., solicitor; Mr. Francis Graham-Harrison of the Home Office;
- Mr. G. P. Coldstream, C.B., of the Lord Chancellor's Office.
The terms of reference of the Committee are:
To consider whether the Court of Criminal Appeal and the House of Lords should be empowered to order a new trial of a convicted 191W person who has appealed to the Court of Criminal Appeal, or whose case has been referred to the Court by the Secretary of State, and, if so, in what circumstances and subject to what safeguards.The Secretary to the Committee is Mr. R. A. James, M.C., of the Home Office.