Day 191 - 24 Nov 95 - Page 15
1 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What I have done, "December 12th, Cranna,
2 December 13th and 14th Judge away".
3
4 MR. RAMPTON: Yes, I have put that too.
5
6 MR. JUSTICE BELL: That has been a development since Mr. Rampton
7 did the -----
8
9 MR. MORRIS: Fair enough. I am not criticising it.
10
11 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You can also write in 18th and 19th January
12 Judge away, and 14th and 15th March Judge away.
13
14 MR. MORRIS: Yes, I have taken that on board. The most
15 important thing, I do not want to go through these
16 individually, just see how things develop, but the one that
17 gives me most concern is the only person who has been
18 provisionally scheduled for next year is Ray Cesca. It
19 just happens to be that February 19th to 23rd is my son's
20 half term. Therefore, I am asking for Mr. Cesca to be
21 provisionally scheduled at a different week. I think that
22 is the only thing I have to say at this stage about the
23 scheduling.
24
25 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, what I suggest about that is this: I am
26 not disposed to agree for February half term (any more than
27 your Lordship was disposed to agree for the October half
28 term) that the whole week should be lost. I am sure your
29 Lordship is well aware of this: This term, by the end of
30 the actual sittings that we are going to have, or more
31 perhaps, more accurately, by 21st December which is the
32 actual end of term, we shall have sat for about 58 per cent
33 of the available sitting time.
34
35 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I had not worked it out, but that figure does
36 not surprise me.
37
38 MR. RAMPTON: It is five-and-a-half weeks out of thirteen,
39 roughly speaking ---
40
41 MS. STEEL: I do not think that is right.
42
43 MR. RAMPTON: -- that we have lost. I have counted them up and
44 it right, since 25th September. My Lord, I am not going to
45 agree -- I am going to leave it to your Lordship -- that we
46 should lose the whole of that week of 19th February. I am
47 anxious about Mr. Cesca because he has been moved once,
48 though he had, as your Lordship knows, as it were,
49 obliterated his family's holiday in order to make himself
50 available in December. He has been moved once. I do not
51 want to move him again.
52
53 Having looked recently at the rainforest evidence, I have
54 to say that I cannot see why he should not start later in
55 that week, say, Wednesday or Thursday, and complete his
56 evidence by the end of the next week, which is Friday
57 1st March. He was originally only going to have eight days
58 anyway when he was scheduled in December.
59
60 I am quite content that Mr. Morris (as he was going to do
