Page 43 - When Things Go Wrong

end, and established facts should carry over, not be repeatedly subject to
revision”. 114

2.79 However, the Working Party (and all of its consultees) are of the view that,
given the lack of criminal evidential and procedural safeguards, there is no
possibility of an inquest or inquiry binding a criminal trial without prejudicing
the Article 6 ECHR defence rights of the accused. This would be the case even
where an unlawful killing conclusion is found to the criminal standard. We
therefore consider that there should be a presumption that criminal
proceedings, if commenced or expected, will precede the SPI. The
Working Party recommends that this presumption should also apply in
the establishment of public inquiries.

2.80 However, we recognise that there will be cases of serious public concern,
where the complexity of criminal investigations (involving forensic evidence
and large numbers of witness statements) when set against the urgent need to
address issues of public safety, will dictate that the fact-finding process should
proceed alongside or in advance of criminal proceedings. Therefore, departing
from the mandatory Schedule 1 suspension provisions in the 2009 Act, the
judge or Senior Coroner should retain discretion as to whether the
investigation should be opened notwithstanding any ongoing prosecution,
where delay is likely to be inordinate and/or where the fair trial rights of
potential suspects are unlikely to be prejudiced by concurrent
investigations.

Volume and cost

2.81 It would be for the Chief Coroner or Government to determine whether an SPI
is required (see para 2.59 above). However, we would predict that an SPI
would be established infrequently – perhaps up to six times a year and some
years not at all. It is not designed to replace the jury inquests heard every day
across the system (527 in 2019). 115 An instructive comparator might be the

114 David Conn, ‘Once again, our legal system has failed the victims of Hillsborough’ (The Guardian, 6
December 2019).
115 Inquiries into Fatal Accidents and Sudden Deaths etc. (Scotland) Act 2016, s. 4.
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