Caution on cameras

Peers and MPs have warned of the “slippery slope effect” if cameras are allowed in court.

The Joint Committee on Human Rights has published its report into the Crime and Courts Bill, currently at Report stage in the House of Lords. It warns that defendants may not be protected and that victims and witnesses may be deterred from the judicial process because the Bill is too “broad”.

It recommends the government conduct a more comprehensive public consultation, carry out a more detailed impact assessment and review its policy after a few years, and wants filming to be restricted to appellate proceedings in the meantime.

The committee says that, while the government intends to restrict filming to the Court of Appeal initially, the Bill allows for the possibility of this being extended at a later stage.

Dr Hywel Francis MP, chair of the committee, says: “We agree that justice must be transparent and publicly accessible.

“But the power in the Bill is too broad…as currently drafted, it could too easily be extended to include filming of witnesses, parties, crime victims, jurors and defendants—a very different proposition, which could have the unintended consequence of deterring victims and witnesses, and possibly even undermining the fairness of trials. It’s potentially a slippery slope.”