The Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP) will not be removed from under the umbrella of the Government’s Ministry of Justice as it does not square with the push towards Independence, Junior Minister for Justice Michael Scott said last night.

Speaking during the debate on the budget for that Ministry, Shadow Attorney General John Barritt had complained that with the figure increasing from $614,000 last year to a predicted $1,282,000 for this year, he did not agree with its basic set up.

He went to give his view that the DPP as Bermuda’s criminal prosecuting authority should be treated as an independent, non-Ministry items in the budget in the same way as watchdogs the Auditor General and the Ombudsman.

He pointed to the Bermuda Constitution which says the Department and Director of Public Prosecutions — an appointment made by the Governor — should not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.

Giving a hypothetical example, Mr. Barritt said the current set-up could lead to questions being raised about the independence of the Department of Public Prosecutions from Government if a civil servant was arrested for a serious offence, and had a connection with someone in Government, but a decision was made not to prosecute.

The office of the DPP was created in 1999 following the decision of the newly-elected Progressive Labour Party Government that the role of the criminal prosecuting authority and the principal legal advisor to the government should be separated.

Responding to Mr. Barritt’s comments, Mr. Scott said Bermuda’s constitution does indeed give authority for the office of the DPP to come under the Ministry. He said that both he and Attorney General Phil Perinchief were supportive of the independence of the Department of Public Prosecutions, and it has the highest degree of probity.

He said that although the Government’s legal advisor, the Attorney General, is a political appointment, there has been no interference with the DPP. However, he said there was a reluctance to devolve the DPP away from a Government ministry as this would bring it under the authority of HM Government and the Governor. This, he said, would go against the Government’s current moves down the road to Independence for Bermuda, but that perhaps after Independence the department could be devolved.

In further remarks during the debate, Mr. Scott acknowledged that the DPP was “severely understaffed” during the last budget year due to a number of resignations. There are, he said, currently vacancies for three Crown Counsels — one of which is due to be filled by a recruit from England in April — and two vacant junior Crown Counsel positions.

A further junior Crown Counsel has recently been re-assigned to the Human Rights Commission, although Mr. Scott’s briefing did not refer to this as a vacancy.

The Principal Crown Counsel role — second in command to the Director of the DPP — is currently vacant. As this newspaper has previous reported, Nicholas Harrison, an experienced prosecutor from Australia, began work in that role earlier this month but quit after just two days.

Mr. Scott also confirmed that two overseas applicants are being considered to fill the position of Solicitor General — vacant since Wilhelm Bourne left to take up that position in Anguilla in December. With the position currently filled in an acting capacity by Melvin Douglas, Mr. Scott said confirmation of the new appointment should be made soon.

Mr. Scott praised Director of Public Prosecutions Vinette Graham-Allen for her work to eliminate a backlog of cases awaiting trial at Supreme Court. With her contract due to expire this summer, recruiting for her position is currently underway too.He also announced plans for new Legal Aid clinics to be set up in the east, west and central areas of the Island.