$Unique_ID{bob00520} $Pretitle{} $Title{United Kingdom Justice and the Law in Britain} $Subtitle{} $Author{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Affiliation{Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC} $Subject{police crime criminal ireland law northern act government local prevention see tables } $Date{1990} $Log{See Table 1.*0052001.tab } Title: United Kingdom Book: Justice and the Law in Britain Author: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Affiliation: Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington DC Date: 1990 Justice and the Law in Britain Although the United Kingdom is a unitary state, England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland all have their own legal systems, with considerable differences in law, organisation and practice. However, a large volume of modern legislation applies throughout the United Kingdom. There is a common distinction between criminal law, concerned with wrongful acts harmful to the community, and civil law, concerned with individuals' rights, duties and obligations towards one another. The main sources of law are government legislation, common law and European Community law. Common law, the ancient law of the land deduced from custom and interpreted in court cases by judges, has never been precisely defined or codified but forms the basis of the law except when superseded by legislation. European Community law is confined mainly to economic and social matters; in certain circumstances it takes precedence over domestic law. It is normally applied by the domestic courts, but the most authoritative rulings are given by the Community's Court of Justice. Certain changes to United Kingdom law have been enacted as a result of rulings of the European Court of Human Rights. These arose where domestic law was in breach of the Council of Europe's Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, to which the United Kingdom is a party. Criminal Justice The Government's strategy for dealing with crime is to prevent it, where possible; to detect suspects; to convict the guilty and acquit the innocent; to deal with those found guilty; and to provide more effective support for the victims of crime. It is also concerned to maintain public confidence in the criminal justice system and a proper balance between the rights of the citizen and the needs of the community as a whole. With continuing concern in Britain, as in many other countries, over rising crime rates, public expenditure on the criminal justice system has increased from about 2,000 million Pounds in 1979-80 to an estimated 7,000 million Pounds in 1989-90, an increase in real terms of about 50 per cent. Extra spending has taken place on the police, the probation service and prison building. More than two-thirds of expenditure is initially incurred by local government authorities, with the help of central government grants, mainly on the police. Crime Statistics Differences in the legal systems, police recording practices and statistical classifications in the countries of the United Kingdom make it impracticable to analyse in detail trends in crime for the country as a whole. Nevertheless, it is clear that, as in Western Europe generally, there has been a substantial increase in crime since the early 1950s. However, official statistics cover only crime recorded by the police and can be affected by changes in the proportion of crimes which are undiscovered or unreported. [See Table 1.: Notifiable Crimes Recorded by the Police in England and Wales 1989] Table 1 shows the number of offences recorded by the police in England and Wales in 1989 and their clear up rates. There were 3.9 million crimes in 1989, of which 32.3 per cent were cleared up. Violence against the person accounted for only 4.6 per cent of recorded crimes. The Scottish police recorded 493,000 crimes, of which 33 per cent were cleared up. Crime tends to be concentrated in inner cities and deprived areas; the risk of burglary can be as high as one in ten houses a year in inner city areas, compared with one in 100 in rural areas. Rising affluence has provided more opportunities for casual property crime. In 1957, for example, car crime was only 10 per cent of total crime but 30 years later this had risen to over 25 per cent. Most crime is committed by young males; it is opportunist and is not planned by hardened professional criminals although these do exist. Only a small proportion of young male offenders go on to become serious repeat offenders. Crime Prevention The national crime prevention programme is overseen by the Ministerial Group on Crime Prevention. National publicity campaigns, such as the Crack Crime campaign launched in 1988, are a regular feature of the Government's programmes. The Home Office's Crime Prevention Unit helps local agencies to design and implement preventive measures and to assess the results. In Scotland national publicity is administered through the Crime Prevention Committee. Other Government departments are brought together with the Home Office in the Ministerial Group to deal with crime prevention strategies. The Department of the Environment's Priority Estates Project and Estate Action Programme are designed to encourage improvements in the design, layout and management of housing estates. The gas and electricity suppliers have speeded up their programme of replacing domestic prepayment meters by cashless or 'token' meters, so removing a prime target for burglaries. Local crime prevention panels-each one assisted by the police crime prevention department-identify crime problems and try to tackle them through publicity, marking goods and equipment and fund raising to buy security devices. The panels have been closely involved in setting up some 74,000 neighbourhood watch schemes in England and Wales. There are some 1,100 watch schemes in Scotland. In 1988 an independent national crime prevention organisation, Crime Concern, was launched to encourage local initiatives such as crime prevention panels and neighbourhood watch schemes, and to stimulate business participation in crime prevention. Crime Concern in Scotland was established in 1989. In 1986 five local projects were set up with government support to see how crime and the fear of crime could be reduced through action by local government, private businesses, the police and voluntary agencies. As part of the Government's Safer Cities projects, this model is being adapted for use in 20 inner city areas in England and Wales. Each project is led by a local committee, drawn from local agencies and supported by a co-ordinator funded by the Home Office. Four projects are also being established in Scotland. The aim is to encourage local communities to devise their own crime prevention activities. Similar projects are being funded by the Government in Northern Ireland. Strengthening the Law A number of measures to strengthen the criminal justice system have been taken. The Drug Trafficking Offences Act 1986 and the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 1987 provide powers to trace, freeze and confiscate the proceeds of trafficking. Under the Acts a court can issue an order requiring the offender to pay an amount equal to the full value of the proceeds arising from the trafficking. The laundering of illegal money associated with trafficking is unlawful. Because of the international nature of the problem, the legislation also provides for restraint and confiscation orders made by courts to be enforced against assets held overseas, and vice versa. These arrangements apply to countries with which mutual enforcement agreements have been concluded. Under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 a court may also make a confiscation order against the proceeds arising from offences such as robbery, fraud, blackmail and insider dealing in shares. A Serious Fraud Office with wide powers to investigate and prosecute serious or complex fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was established in 1988 under the Criminal Justice Act 1987. Legislation has been passed to increase controls on firearms and the carrying of knives. In 1988 the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 prohibited the private ownership of certain highly dangerous types of weapon such as high-powered self-loading rifles and burst-fire weapons. It also tightened police regulation of the possession, safekeeping and movement of shotguns. Similar legislation applies in Northern Ireland. Under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 it is unlawful to manufacture, sell or import certain weapons such as knuckledusters or, in England and Wales, to carry a knife in a public place without good reason. The Public Order Act 1986 and similar legislation in Northern Ireland strengthened the law against incitement to racial hatred and created a new offence of possessing inflammatory material. It also introduced in England and Wales a new order for convicted football hooligans to prevent them attending certain matches and created a new offence of disorderly conduct to enable police to deal with hooligan behaviour. The Act gave the police powers to impose conditions on assemblies in public places. Helping the Victim The Government is taking steps to ensure that proper consideration is given to the needs of victims of crime. There are more than 350 victim support schemes in England and Wales, covering 94 per cent of the population, with over 6,000 trained volunteer visitors. They are co-ordinated by a national organisation, Victim Support, which receives a government grant. The Government also finances local schemes to meet either the costs of paid co-ordinators or running costs. In February 1990 the Government published its Victims Charter, setting out for the first time the rights and expectations of victims of crime. Victim support schemes are expanding in Northern Ireland. The courts can also help victims by granting a compensation order against a convicted criminal which takes precedence over a fine. The Criminal Justice Act 1988 requires courts in England and Wales to consider compensation in every appropriate case and to give reasons if it is not awarded. Victims of violent crime may apply for compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme administered by a Board. Compensation is based on common law damages and is a lump-sum payment. In 1989-90 some 38,600 cases were resolved by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board and nearly 75 million Pounds was paid in compensation. The Criminal Justice Act 1988 provided for the Scheme to be established on a statutory basis. Because of the need to tackle the backlog of unresolved cases and to improve the Board's service to claimants, this provision has been postponed and steps are being taken to streamline procedures under the present scheme. The Scheme allows foreign nationals to claim compensation for violent criminal acts against them in Britain. In Northern Ireland there is separate, statutory provision in certain circumstances for compensation to be made from public funds for criminal injuries, and for malicious damage to property, including the resulting loss of profits. In February 1990 Britain ratified the European Convention on the Compensation of Victims of Violent Crimes, under which mutual arrangements for compensation apply to citizens of those countries in which the Convention is in force; at present these are Denmark, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden. Measures to Combat Terrorism Legislation provides the authorities with certain exceptional powers for dealing with and preventing terrorist activities, while taking account of the need to achieve a proper balance between the safety of the public and the rights of the individual. While acknowledging that the special powers make inroads into civil liberties, the Government believes that they should continue in force as long as a substantial terrorist threat remains. Nobody can be imprisoned for political beliefs; all prisoners, except those awaiting trial, have been found guilty in court of criminal offences. The legislation is reviewed annually by an independent person whose reports are presented to Parliament. The Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Acts 1978 and 1987 give the security forces in Northern Ireland special powers to search, question and arrest suspected terrorists. They allow the Secretary of State to proscribe terrorist organisations. Certain serious terrorist offences are tried by a judge sitting alone without a jury because of the possibility of jurors being intimidated by terrorist organisations. The maximum period for which the police can hold a suspected terrorist on their own authority has been reduced from 72 to 48 hours. Statements obtained by the use or threat of violence are inadmissible in court. Renewable each year, the Emergency Provisions Acts expire in 1992. The Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act 1989 applies throughout the United Kingdom and is renewable annually by Parliament. It provides for the exclusion from Great Britain, Northern Ireland or the United Kingdom of people connected with terrorism related to Northern Ireland affairs and for the proscription of terrorist organisations in Great Britain. It also gives the police powers to arrest people suspected of being involved in terrorism without warrant and hold them for 48 hours and, with the approval of the Secretary of State, for up to a further five days. This provision also applies to suspected international terrorists. It is a criminal offence to handle, give or receive funds for use in the furtherance of, or in connection with, terrorism. Police are able to apply for a court order to freeze a suspect's assets once he or she has been charged and funds can be confiscated if a person is convicted. The Act also provides for reciprocal enforcement agreements with other countries. The Criminal Jurisdiction Act 1975 makes it possible to try in Northern Ireland a person accused of certain offences committed in the Irish Republic. It also enables evidence to be obtained in Northern Ireland for the trial of offences in the Irish Republic. Reciprocal legislation is in force in the Irish Republic. Britain attaches great importance to international action to combat terrorism and plays an active part in the work of various bodies. These include a group of European Community ministers, which facilitates the exchange of information and intelligence about terrorism affecting member countries. Britain believes that there should be no concessions to terrorist demands and that international co-operation is essential in tracking down and arresting terrorists, and impeding the movement of international terrorists from one country to another. THE POLICE SERVICE There are 43 police forces in England and Wales, eight in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland (the Royal Ulster Constabulary). Outside London the service is organised on a county basis (regional in Scotland) though some counties and regions have combined forces. The Metropolitan Police Force and the City of London force are responsible for policing London. At the end of 1989 police strength in Great Britain was nearly 140,000. The Royal Ulster Constabulary numbered 8,260. Because of the need to strike a balance between providing the police with effective powers and protecting individual freedom against any abuse of those powers, the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 was introduced to clarify police powers in England and Wales to stop, search, arrest and detain suspects and to search premises for evidence. Separate legislation applies in Scotland, while a number of major reforms are being implemented in Northern Ireland to bring it in line with the 1984 Act. Officers in Great Britain do not normally carry firearms, although in an emergency firearms can be issued quickly on the authority of a senior officer. In Northern Ireland police officers are issued with firearms for personal protection and other firearms are available for duty purposes. The Interception of Communications Act 1985 sets out the grounds on which the Government is empowered to authorise interception of postal and telephone services. For the police, these are the prevention and detection of serious crime, and, in some instances, the protection of national security. The other ground for interception is the safeguarding of the economic well-being of Britain. Interception outside the procedures established by the Act is a criminal offence. Police Authorities and Chief Constables Police forces are maintained by police authorities. In England and Wales these are committees of local county councillors and magistrates, and in Scotland the regional and islands councils. The police authority for London's Metropolitan Police Force is the Home Secretary. In Northern Ireland the police authority is appointed by the Secretary of State. The police authority's functions, some subject to ministerial approval, include appointing the chief constable, deputy chief constable and assistant chief constables; fixing the maximum permitted strength of the force; and providing buildings and equipment. In the Metropolitan Police area the commissioner of police and his immediate subordinates are appointed on the recommendation of the Home Secretary. The police authorities are financed by central and local government. Chief constables are responsible for the direction and control of police forces, including the appointment, promotion and discipline of all ranks below assistant chief constable. They are generally answerable to the police authorities on matters of efficiency, and must submit an annual report. Central Authorities The Home Secretary and the Secretaries of State for Scotland and Northern Ireland approve the appointment of chief, deputy and assistant chief constables; where necessary they can require a police authority to retire a chief constable in the interests of efficiency, call for a report from a chief constable on matters relating to local policing or institute a local inquiry. They can make regulations covering such matters of qualifications for appointment, promotion and retirement; discipline; hours of duty, leave, pay and allowances; and uniform. Some of these regulations are first negotiable within the Police Negotiating Board for the United Kingdom. The Board consists of an independent chairman and representatives of the police authorities, police staff associations and the home departments. Matters of a non-negotiable kind and general questions are discussed by the Police Advisory Boards. All police forces (except the Metropolitan Police) are subject to statutory inspection by inspectors of constabulary reporting to the appropriate Secretary of State. Inspectors maintain close touch with the forces they inspect and have advisory functions. At the request of the Commissioner, the inspectorate also undertakes inspections of selected parts of the Metropolitan Police.