1991-01-21 10:17 SECURITY BRANCH

852 868 5074 P. 13

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to his case or if it involves the breach by

the Crown of an agreement not to prosecute. The inroads which any

latter

General's

power may

make

exercise

on the

of the

Attorney

responsibility

must

be

acknowledged.

"

He continued (at pp. 32 - 33):

"In determining whether or not the law I confess,

should

loath

50

be extended

I am,

further

to

restrict

the

constitutionally exclusive responsibility of the Attorney General in this field since

the

in courts

the involvement by prosecution process is liable to compromise

to

t:o be perceived

any

and

compromise their impartiality. A passage from the speech of Lord Dilhorne in R v Humphryes (1977) AC 1 (at p. 26) seems in point:

'A judge must keep out of the arena, he should not have ΟΙ appear to have any responsibility for the institution

functions the of a prosecution, prosecutors and of judges must not be

blurred.

If

a

of

to

power judge has decline to hear a case because he does not think it should be brought then it may soon be thought that the cases he

has

proceed

are

cases

to allowed brought with his consent or approval.'

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