Building on our project Opening Up Closed Judgments: Secrecy, Security and Accountability, the joint Bingham Centre and University of York submission made in June 2021 to Sir Duncan Ouseley's review of the use of Closed Material Proceedings sets out the serious Rule of Law concerns that CMPs continue to raise.
The submission puts forward 14 substantive recommendations for reform to the current framework and procedures to ensure increased compliance with Rule of Law standards, particularly, natural justice, open justice and equality of arms. The recommendations include a call for improved transparency in the recording and reporting of cases where CMPs are used; a prohibition on destroying CMP related judgements; the development of a system for periodic review to determine whether the judgements can (either fully or in part) be made open if publication would not pose a risk to national security.
