Introduction
1. This discussion document is based on the report of an interdepartmental working group of officials set up in November 1986 to consider the United Kingdom's present arrangements for dealing with requests from abroad for legal assistance in criminal matters and the possible need for improvement. It is concerned with the provision of assistance to overseas countries on a reciprocal basis, excluding extradition. The Government's proposals for reforming the law on extradition are in the Criminal Justice Bill at present before Parliament.
Nature of Mutual Assistance
2. Mutual assistance, as discussed in this paper, is the means whereby one State provides assistance to another in the investigation and prosecution of criminal offences. Assistance is usually in the form of written evidence, including sworn evidence obtained in court, search for and seizure of material required in evidence, the service of judicial documents, the making of arrangements for the appearance of witnesses at hearings abroad (including witnesses who are currently in custody) and the tracing of witnesses and suspects.
3. It is normally a precondition for such. assistance either than criminal proceedings should already be pending in the requesting State or that initial investigations should have begun with a reasonable expectation that criminal proceedings will ensue. To the extent that a State's legislation permits, some limited assistance may be rendered on the basis of the principle of international comity (as is now done in the United Kingdom); more usually mutual assistance is founded on a formal international arrangement. Such arrangements may be bilateral treaties, or multilateral conventions such as the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (Annex A). In the Commonwealth, the new Commonwealth Scheme for Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters (Annex B) is dependent on the enactment of broadly similar reciprocal domestic legislation in participating countries.
Background
4.
The development of mutual assistance arrangements has been given fresh impetus in recent years by the rapid expansion in international crime, such as drug trafficking and international fraud. Modern transport and communication facilities have heightened the need to ensure that criminals do not escape justice by crossing national boundaries (a process that has become much easier in the case of countries within the European Community). The international fight against crime is increasingly dependent upon effective arrangements for mutual assistance, which can greatly contribute to the effective prosecution of criminals.
5. Within the past few years the Government has taken a number of steps to enhance the extent to which the United Kingdom can co-operate with other countries in criminal legal matters. Following an extensive review of extradition law, proposals to modernise this country's
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