Day 157 - 18 Jul 95 - Page 09


     
     1        sabotage the Defendants' preparations of cross-examination
     2        and evaluation of the evidence.
     3
     4        One further result is that, at present, you have said that
     5        you would feel uncomfortable having any facility which is
     6        not available to the Defendants which, effectively, means
     7        that only McDonald's have a transcript of what is being
     8        heard in open court in a public trial.
     9
    10        To go into it in a little bit more depth, and we will come
    11        to the authorities which, we hope, will demonstrate that
    12        you have discretion, but we have to convince you that you
    13        ought to exercise it in our favour.  The trial is being
    14        held in open court, and the press and the public are
    15        entitled to attend and report on the case.  The evidence is
    16        not secret.
    17
    18        McDonald's, on 4th July, said that a condition for us to
    19        receive the transcripts from them -- and we make it clear
    20        we are quite prepared to copy a transcript given to us
    21        ourselves and return the copy so it will not cost them one
    22        pence if they should not be able to afford such a high
    23        amount -- that we would have to sign an undertaking not to
    24        copy any section of any transcript or read out over the
    25        phone to Defence witnesses, legal advisers, journalists or
    26        campaigners, any part of any transcript.  We believe this
    27        undertaking -- we will come to the authority on this -- is
    28        seeking that undertaking.
    29
    30   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, I must intervene.  That has been
    31        overtaken by the letter dated 17th July where the precise
    32        terms of the undertaking and conditions are set out in
    33        detail.
    34
    35   MS. STEEL:  Can we just clarify:  Is Mr. Rampton saying he has
    36        changed his case from last week?
    37
    38   MR. RAMPTON:  I do not change my case.  I set out in detail in
    39        that letter all the conditions which would, on the one
    40        hand, prevent the Defendants from misusing the transcripts
    41        and would, on the other hand, allow them every facility to
    42        conduct their case by reference to the transcripts.
    43
    44   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  You have to work today, if you choose to deal
    45        with it at all, on the basis of the up-to-date position
    46        which is as set out in the letter of 17th July.
    47
    48   MR. MORRIS:  McDonald's have suddenly changed their position
    49        because we believed that the undertaking they sought then
    50        was taking complete advantage of us being unrepresented 
    51        Defendants, to try and get us to sign away our basic 
    52        rights, which is to ----- 
    53
    54   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, Mr. Morris is once again (as I feared he
    55        would) making use of an occasion in open court to make
    56        political speeches which have no bearing on the present
    57        application, which is a question of law for your Lordship.
    58        The only matter which may bear upon that is what we have
    59        put in our latest letter.
    60

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