Monday, November 15, 2004
You must enforce the law, JPs told
By Joshua Rozenberg and Richard Savill
Magistrates must enforce hunting laws passed by Parliament or resign from the Bench, the Constitution Secretary Lord Falconer has warned.
In a foreword to revised guidelines currently being distributed to all 28,500 JPs, Lord Falconer said that magistrates are required to enforce any law that is enacted.
"Should a magistrate be unable to meet that requirement," he continued, "I would be unlikely to consider them suitable for office."
The guidelines have always made it clear that magistrates may have to stand down if they are convicted of crimes, including motoring offences.
But Lord Falconer has revised the wording to cover a magistrate who has "indicated an intention to disobey a law with which they disagree, should it be enacted in future".
This is understood to refer to the Hunting Declaration, the supporters of which have vowed "to disobey, peacefully, any law purporting to ban hunting".
Lord Falconer said he appreciated that magistrates have the same right as other citizens to hold personal views on any issue. But he is concerned about any actions that interfere with the requirements of holding office as a magistrate.
"In particular, my view is that, were a magistrate to break any relevant law enacted by Parliament, or refuse to enforce it, that would be likely to constitute conduct incompatible with the requirements of their office," he said.
In addition, those magistrates who are found to have brought the magistracy into disrepute are liable to face disciplinary action.
Magistrates who have spoken out in support of hunting include Derek Pearce, 58, a semi-retired farmer, who has sat on the bench in North Avon for 18 years.
He has signed the Hunting Declaration, joining those who intend to defy any ban.
Mr Pearce, a churchwarden, and a member of the Beaufort Hunt, has said he expected either to be asked to stand down or to resign, if hunting becomes illegal.
"If the Lord Chancellor wants to sack me, then he can be my guest," he said in an interview last year.
"I'm not prepared to carry on being a magistrate and sit on cases involving hunting," he said.
Mr Pearce said he accepted that, ultimately, if he defied a ban he could be arrested and put in prison.
Magistrates must enforce hunting laws passed by Parliament or resign from the Bench, the Constitution Secretary Lord Falconer has warned.
In a foreword to revised guidelines currently being distributed to all 28,500 JPs, Lord Falconer said that magistrates are required to enforce any law that is enacted.
"Should a magistrate be unable to meet that requirement," he continued, "I would be unlikely to consider them suitable for office."
The guidelines have always made it clear that magistrates may have to stand down if they are convicted of crimes, including motoring offences.
But Lord Falconer has revised the wording to cover a magistrate who has "indicated an intention to disobey a law with which they disagree, should it be enacted in future".
This is understood to refer to the Hunting Declaration, the supporters of which have vowed "to disobey, peacefully, any law purporting to ban hunting".
Lord Falconer said he appreciated that magistrates have the same right as other citizens to hold personal views on any issue. But he is concerned about any actions that interfere with the requirements of holding office as a magistrate.
"In particular, my view is that, were a magistrate to break any relevant law enacted by Parliament, or refuse to enforce it, that would be likely to constitute conduct incompatible with the requirements of their office," he said.
In addition, those magistrates who are found to have brought the magistracy into disrepute are liable to face disciplinary action.
Magistrates who have spoken out in support of hunting include Derek Pearce, 58, a semi-retired farmer, who has sat on the bench in North Avon for 18 years.
He has signed the Hunting Declaration, joining those who intend to defy any ban.
Mr Pearce, a churchwarden, and a member of the Beaufort Hunt, has said he expected either to be asked to stand down or to resign, if hunting becomes illegal.
"If the Lord Chancellor wants to sack me, then he can be my guest," he said in an interview last year.
"I'm not prepared to carry on being a magistrate and sit on cases involving hunting," he said.
Mr Pearce said he accepted that, ultimately, if he defied a ban he could be arrested and put in prison.
