Day 064 - 08 Dec 94 - Page 44
1 precise historical account from somebody who was actually
2 in charge of this of the availability of this various kind
3 of literature in the stores throughout the period. We
4 cannot say what the evidence will be at the moment or who
5 will give it, but that is our intention.
6
7 MR. MORRIS: It does leave us in a difficult position because we
8 are questioning witnesses now about these issues.
9
10 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. All I am saying is that when a witness
11 says they do not know, if you can put something to them
12 which, for instance, they have written themselves which is
13 inconsistent with that, well and good. But the time comes
14 when that is the witness's answer. Whether it is a
15 reliable answer or not is a matter for comment, perhaps
16 considering other evidence in due course, but that happens
17 to be this witness's answer.
18
19 It is this witness's answer that he is not relying upon any
20 particular responsibility or any documentation. It is just
21 the best of his recollection, looking back what must be
22 nine years, as to what he recalls being there. So, the
23 same comments apply. The time comes when, having asked the
24 question and got the answer, that is a part of the evidence
25 and, in so far as it is important, we will have to look at
26 the all of the evidence at the end of the day and see what
27 it amounts to.
28
29 MS. STEEL: Part of the problem is that Mr. Oakley in a number
30 of areas has put things in his statement which, quite
31 plainly, are not from his own evidence. Then when we start
32 asking questions about it, he says: "I know nothing about
33 it".
34
35 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I am not looking at his statement save to the
36 extent that I am actually referred to it, or you challenge
37 him on some particular part of it. You did that in
38 relation to the force of some of the percentages of
39 recycled fibre. You do not have to fear that I will go
40 hunting around in his statement for information which has
41 not been brought out in the evidence.
42
43 MS. STEEL: That is the problem. I mean, some of this has been
44 brought out in the evidence and, you know, what are we
45 supposed to do apart from cross-examine on that?
46
47 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You can ask the questions you have asked.
48 All I am urging you is the time comes when you have an
49 answer that the person says he does not know or that he got
50 the information from somewhere else and he has no first
51 hand knowledge of his own, and that is that so far as that
52 witness's evidence is concerned. It does not mean to say
53 I must accept what is said -- I may do, I may not -- one
54 has to look at all the evidence at the end of the day. It
55 is unproductive and takes time to no avail just to keep
56 asking again and again. That is my only point.
57
58 MS. STEEL: Part of the problem is -- the problem basically is
59 I have prepared various questions based on Mr. Oakley's
60 statement and on the evidence which he gave in-chief about
