TNAG-0397-FCO40-443-Problem-of-increase-in-crime-in-Hong-Kong-1973 — Page 93

examination

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This/suggests that implementation of the proposal may safely be

postponed for a while without prejudice to the interest which

both the community and accused persons have in the early trial

of criminal charges. A number of factors has led to this

conclusion. An important one is that time ought to be taken to

see whether the recent increase, approved by this Council, in

the number of District Judges is sufficient to enable the District

Court to deal effectively with any further increase which there

may be in the number of criminal cases coming before it.

Sir, in addition, Unofficial Members of this Council

have expressed to me their concern that, if some of the criminal

cases which under existing policy are tried in the District Court

were to be tried before the magistrates' courts, legal aid should

be available to the accused in those cases. That is a matter of

great importance, but it is one which calls for careful study

having due regard to the various, and sometimes conflicting,

factors involved.

Much public attention has understandably been focused,

in the context of the Fight Violent Crime Campaign, on both of

the Bills concerned with sentencing powers. They are striking

measures and it has been suggested that they will themselves

lead to heavier sentences. That is not so. They do not, for

example, create new offences; they do not increase the sentence

for existing offences. Their object, as I have already said,

is to provide a means whereby a build-up of criminal cases

awaiting trial could be tackled if necessary. To the extent that

the avoidance of delay in bring accused persons to trial is

important in the context of the war against crime generally,