2 -
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As a consequence of the increase in membership from six to nine, the Bill also provides for an increase in the quorum from the Chief Justice plus two members to the Chief Justice plus four members.
The other change introduced by the Bill concerns decisions taken by the Commission. At present, such decisions are required to be unanimous. This arrangement can clearly give rise to difficulties and to a theoretical situation, which I hasten to add has not happened in practice, in which a single member could effectively veto a decision of the remainder. The Bill therefore provides that in future decisions should be taken by a substantial majority. The majority will vary depending on the numbers present. When eight or nine members are present, majority of six in favour will be required; when six or seven members are present, a majority of five in favour will be required; and when only five members are present, a decision would require the
of all those attending. These arrangements will, I believe, provide a more satisfactory basis
for
support
a
decision-taking
by
the
the
fi Commission.
ト
Sir, Members will have seen from/press reports
that the Bar Association and the Law Society have jointly
raised a number of points on the Bill. With the Council's indulgence, I should like to take this opportunity to comment briefly on them.
2
The
The two learned bodies have expressed concern about the lack of prior consultation on the Bill. fact is that the Bill was published in the Government Gazette twelve days ago; it is being introduced into this Council today; and the
and the date of its Second Reading and subsequent stages has yet to be fixed. This procedure
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