A parliamentary inquiry into the controversial law around joint enterprise is to begin work next month. The Westminster Commission for Joint Enterprise is to be launched at an event in the House of Commons and will be the first major project of the newly-formed All-Parliamentary Group on Miscarriages of Justice headed by the Labour MP Kim Johnson MP as the new chair. New members of the APPG include the former Solicitor-General and Tory peer Lord Edward Garnier, the new chair of the House of Commons’s justice committee Andy Slaughter and Liz Saville-Roberts, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster lead. Full list below.
The Westminster Commission on Joint Enterprise is to be headed up by the Labour peer and the former joint general secretary of Unite Lord Tony Woodley, together with academics Dr Louise Hewitt, a law lecturer at Greenwich University and founder of the Innocent Project London, and Dr Bharat Malkani, a law lecturer and specialist is race and justice. The commissioners will be announced shortly. ‘The Westminster Commission is seeking to ensure that this critical issue remains at the forefront of our government’s agenda. Our launch event in Parliament on Tuesday 12th November will establish what our next steps are in the fight for justice,’ commented Kim Johnson.
The campaign group JENGbA welcomed the initiative which, in the words of co-founder Gloria Morrison, will examine ‘over a decade worth of campaigning and research that must finally end the injustice of joint enterprise’. ‘The campaign thanks Kim Johnson MP and everyone involved for their recognition of this cruel doctrine and the importance of getting rid of its use once and for all.’
The new inquiry will build on previous work by the APPG. Earlier this year, Kim Johnson sought an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill to tighten up the law so as only those who make a ‘significant contribution’ would be held criminally liable. ‘Joint enterprise continues to have far-reaching consequences for individuals, their families, and their communities,’ the Liverpool Riverside MP said. ‘The unjust outcomes for those who may have had little to no involvement in the crime they are convicted of must be resolved. This is equally true for individuals wrongly convicted of crimes, as in the recent devastating case of Oliver Campbell, as well as the many failings of the Court of Appeal and the CCRC.’
‘This is a deeply personal issue for me and following the positive response of my Private Member’s Bill from colleagues across the political spectrum, there is a huge opportunity for us to hold the government accountable for previous comments on reform. Joint enterprise law must reflect justice, not disproportionate punishment and the increasing criminalisation of Black young men and children and white working-class boys. Through this Westminster Commission, we aim to push for reform, raise awareness, and work toward a legal system that truly serves justice.’
Kim Johnson MP
All APPGs come to an end with the election of a new government and the immediate past chairs of the APPG on Miscarriages of Justice, Barry Sheerman MP and Sir Bob Neill, both stood down from Parliament. The pair set up the APPG in 2017 following the collapse in the number of referrals by the CCRC to the Court of Appeal. The new APPG had its inaugural meeting this week and has 27 members so far.
The Westminster Commission on Joint Enterprise will be the third parliamentary investigation by the APPG. Its first – the Westminster Commission on Miscarriages of Justice – focussed on the concerns over the CCRC and its recommendation for a Law Commission review of the system of criminal appeals was accepted by the Government. The author of that report, Lord Edward Garnier, will be joining the re-established APPG as its co-vice chair.
Garnier, a former solicitor-general, recently called for reform of the CCRC in a debate in the House of Lords saying it ‘unquestionably’ needed new leadership. ‘If the chair and the chief executive will not resign immediately, they should be replaced,’ he said. ‘The CCRC cannot move forward with them in post. We need a full-time executive chair, with at least the standing of a High Court judge, and full-time salaried commissioners rather than the current part-timers. It needs better and better-resourced case managers. The CCRC, as presently organised and managed, is moribund.’
Earlier this week, Kim Johnson highlighted concerns over the manner of the exoneration of Oliver Campbell in a series of parliamentary questions. The judgment of the Court of Appeal has been met with alarm by his legal team. We reported on the day the judgment was published after a long delay that the conviction was overturned in ‘the most begrudging fashion’ with the court showing ‘no sympathy for someone who many are convinced is an innocent and highly vulnerable man who had neither the intellectual capacity nor the physical dexterity to commit the crime’ (more here).
Kim Johnson asked the justice secretary, Heidi Alexander to ‘make an assessment of the adequacy of compensation arrangements for people wrongly convicted of crimes’ in the context of the case. The Court of Appeal effectively closed off Campbell’s opportunity for compensation in a narrow judgment which his supporters believe failed to deal with the overwhelming evidence that points to his innocence.
The MP also asked if the government would ‘take steps to refer the Court of Appeal judgment in the case of Oliver to the Law Commission’. Alexander said the Law Commission would be looking at the compensation scheme. She said criminal justice policies had ‘advanced in the 33 years since Mr Campbell’s conviction, reflecting improved understanding of vulnerabilities’. ‘Robust processes to support defendants are now in place and regularly reviewed, for example guidance for judges on relevant adjustments and the use of intermediaries,’ Alexander added.
Members of APPG on Miscarriages of Justice:
- Debbie Abrahams MP
- Apsana Begum MP
- Lorraine Beavers MP
- Matt Bishop MP
- Baroness Christine Blower
- Richard Burgon MP
- Ian Byrne MP
- Ruth Cadbury MP
- Ashley Dalton MP
- Dawn Butler MP
- Alison Hume MP
- Sharon Hodgson MP
- Baron John Hendy
- Lord Edward Garnier, co-vice chair
- Kim Johnson MP, chair
- John McDonnell MP
- Andy MacDonald MP
- Abtisam Mohamed MP
- Grahame Morris MP
- Kate Osborne MP
- Yasmin Qureshi MP
- Liz Saville-Roberts MP, co-vice chair
- Baron Prem Sikka
- Andy Slaughter MP
- Sarah Smith MP
- Lord Taylor of Warwick
- Jon Trickett MP
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