§ Sir Dudley SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what compensation he is prepared to grant Mr. David Owen of the firm Elizabeth the Chef of Leamington Spa for his out-of-pocket costs involved in preparing to defend a case brought by the Commission for Racial Equality where the complainant withdrew her allegation two days before the hearing.
§ Mr. John PattenThe question of costs in industrial tribunal cases is a matter for the tribunal. The complaint here was not brought by the Commission for Racial Equality, but by an individual, the commission exercising its role of providing for advice or assistance, in this case through a firm of solicitors. The Secretary of State has no responsibility in law in these matters.