Day 163 - 25 Sep 95 - Page 48
1 it was, North Kingstown, Rhode Island in early 1990.
2
3 MR. JUSTICE BELL: There is no follow-up to that?
4
5 MR. RAMPTON: I do not know the follow-up. I have not been
6 through these with a fine tooth comb.
7
8 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I have assumed that if they are -- maybe I am
9 wrong to assume that the fine would appear in the
10 computerised memory?
11
12 MR. RAMPTON: No. The problem is with something like this,
13 first of all, it depends how efficient the system is which
14 has the cuttings on the database. It depends how efficient
15 the computer operator is at finding them. I imagine it is
16 a word search system, I do not know, a bit like Lexis
17 I suspect. Finally, of course, one depends on the
18 newspapers themselves. One knows only too well first that
19 newspapers distort, sometimes deliberately but more often
20 in error, the information so that the public gets the wrong
21 facts. Secondly, they report one stage of a case without
22 ever reporting its conclusion, especially if there is the
23 usual delay, there is a two-year gap between the original
24 accusation and final adjudication. Really to allow this
25 sort of material in this case on that sort of flimsy basis
26 might almost be said to contravene Lord Justice Neill's
27 requirements of reasonably grounds for believing that the
28 evidence will become available to support what is pleaded,
29 not to see, and this is crucially important, not to see, as
30 I think Mr. Morris sees it, whether or not the allegation
31 might or might not be true.
32
33 My Lord, for all these reasons, we invite you to reject
34 both those sets of the proposed amendments.
35
36 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I would like you to reply in the morning when
37 you have your newspaper photocopy, hopefully.
38
39 MR. MORRIS: Yes. I have found the ----
40
41 MR. JUSTICE BELL: If you have found the other reference tell me
42 about that in the morning.
43
44 MR. MORRIS: I have found the 1,000 and the 4 per cent labour
45 investigators. It is on page 50 and it is the second
46 paragraph on page 50.
47
48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Let me find it.
49
50 MR. MORRIS: It was in the Chicago Tribune 1990, March 18th.
51 "Enforcement of the child labour laws has been a low
52 priority. A recent general accounting office study found
53 the government 1,000 investigators and spent about 4 per
54 cent of their efforts on the problem. A congressional
55 critic said it took an average of five complaints to prompt
56 the Labour Department investigations of child labour
57 cases."
58
59 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes.
60
