Legal position
- 7 Nov 06, 03:53 PM
Well well. The attorney general will issue a statement soon clarifying how he'll handle the outcome of "the cash for honours" investigation. has come under pressure to stand aside from any decision about whether to proceed with prosecutions which may (or may not, it should be said from the outset) include people close to the prime minister.
Demands for clarity have increased following the decisions of the Director of Public Prosecutions - a former colleague of Cherie Blair - and the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police - who has regular dealings with the prime minister - to stand aside from decisions related to the investigation.
I understand that Lord Goldsmith (pictured) will soon reply to a letter from his Shadow - Dominic Grieve - asking him to clarify his position. He will say that his formal consent for proceedings will not be required if charges are brought under the law forbidding the granting of honours in return for payment or, indeed, under the law relating to the declaration of political donations. In this case, the Crown Prosecution Service will take the decision as to whether any charges should be brought.
The law does, however, require the attorney to give his formal consent to a small number of possible offences including corruption. In these circumstances, it is his duty, he says, to exercise his independent constitutional duty and to determine whether it is "in the public interest" to proceed. Usually, he would seek independent legal advice from a leading lawyer outside the CPS on this. I am told that it is likely that he would accept that advice.
Why the muddle until now ? The attorney is fiercely protective of his status not as a politician but as the government's senior and independent legal officer. He resents any suggestion of political motivation in consideration of this or any case and, incidentally, has the backing of attorneys past, whether Tory or Labour. He has struggled, however, to give the reassurance that some people are demanding that there will be no interference with this incredibly sensitive case. We will see whether this afternoon's statement silences the critics.
