Prosecution of Offences Act 1985

The Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (c.43)

1 (1) Section 12 of the Magistrates' Courts Act 1980 (pleading guilty by post etc.) shall be amended as follows.

(2) In subsection (4) (notification of accused's desire to plead guilty without appearing before court to be read out) the words " by the clerk of the court" shall be added at the end.

(3) At the end there shall be added the following subsection—

“(9) Where the clerk of the court has received such a notification as is mentioned in subsection (2) above but the accused nevertheless appears before the court at the time and place appointed for the trial or adjourned trial the court may, if the accused consents, proceed under this section as if he were absent.”.

2 In section 19 of that Act (in cases triable either way, court to begin by considering which mode of trial appears more suitable) the following subsection shall be added at the end—

“(5) The power of the Director of Public Prosecutions under subsection (4) above to apply for an offence to be tried on indictment shall not be exercised except with the consent of the Attorney General.”

3 In section 25 of that Act (power to change from summary trial to committal proceedings and vice versa), in subsection (3) before the word " proceed " there shall be inserted " subject to subsection (3A) below " and after subsection (3) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(3A) Where the prosecution is being carried on by the Attorney General or the Solicitor General, the court shall not exercise the power conferred by subsection (3) above without his consent and, where the prosecution is being carried on by the Director of Public Prosecutions, shall not exercise that power if the Attorney General directs that it should not be exercised.”