XN000022-1995-07-26 — Page 24

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Criminal Procedure Ordinance

Following is the speech by the Attorney General, the Hon Jeremy Mathews, in moving the Criminal Procedure Ordinance in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday):

Mr President,

I move the resolution standing in my name in the Order Paper. The resolution is to the effect that the Criminal Procedure (Record of Bail Proceedings) Rules, made by the Chief Justice on 6 July 1995, be approved.

The Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Ordinance 1994 introduced a statutory right to bail and incorporated the law of bail into a single, comprehensive code. The Ordinance included a new provision requiring a record of all bail proceedings to be maintained in such manner and form as may be prescribed by rules and orders, and the record to be made available to an accused person and to counsel and solicitors to such extent and on such terms as may be prescribed.

The Chief Justice has now made rules providing for those matters. The rules provide that the record of bail proceedings shall consist of a summary of all matters relevant to the proceedings, including any application for bail, the grounds of such application, the grounds of any objection to bail, the decision of the court, and the reasons for that decision. The rules also provide that the rules may be kept wholly or partly by computer, and that an extract of the record, in the form prescribed in the Schedule to the rules, shall be made available to the accused person and to counsel and solicitors engaged in the proceedings.

Mr President, I beg to move.

End/Wednesday, July 26, 1995