§ Mr. Douglas-Mannasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the report of the Working Party on Bail Procedures in Magistrates' Courts will be published; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Roy JenkinsThe report is published today. I welcome its publication and I am glad to record my appreciation of the valuable study of the subject which the working party has undertaken.
I accept the working party's view that the broad objective of the bail system should be to keep the number of persons held in custody before trial to the minimum compatible with the interests of justice; and I believe that in general its recommendations will considerably assist the attainment of this objective. I shall announce my intentions in respect of the 516W detailed recommendations when I have been able to assess the reaction to them of the public and of those who are professionally concerned with magistrates' courts, and I should be grateful if any comments could be sent to my Department before the end of July.