Part 3Miscellaneous and general
Abolition of the competence test
I124Abolition of the competence test for witnesses in criminal and civil proceedings
1
The evidence of any person called as a witness (referred to in this section as “the witness”) in criminal or civil proceedings is not inadmissible solely because the witness does not understand—
a
the nature of the duty of a witness to give truthful evidence, or
b
the difference between truth and lies.
2
Accordingly, the court must not, at any time before the witness gives evidence, take any step intended to establish whether the witness understands those matters.