STRAW FACES DRUG TESTS BATTLE

The biggest political battles over civil liberties are expected to involve
home secretary Jack Straw's plans for mandatory drug testing of the 500,000
people arrested each year, and to restrict the right to jury trial for some
defendants.

The home office package of nine bills also includes measures to reduce the
age of consent for gays to 16, in line with with hetereosexuals and lesbians.

A new offence of "abuse of trust" is aimed at people in positions of
authority, such as teachers, who engage in sex with teenagers under 18 in
their care.

Less controversial are plans to reform the probation service, create a
children and family court advisory service, and make it illegal for a
convicted child sex offender to seek a job working with children.

The Queen's speech guidance notes indicate that Mr Straw has already moved
to soften his proposals for mandatory drug testing and restrictions on jury
trial before the legislation is published.

The decision to restrict the right of a defendant to choose whether their
case is heard by the magistrates or before a jury for a limited range of
offences, mostly involving personal honesty such as theft, has been
modified to give the magistrates' wider discretion in deciding. It remains
an issue of fierce controversy in the legal world.

The criminal justice (mode of trial) bill will now include a requirement on
the magistrate to consider the effect of a defendant's reputation and
livelihood.

This will include a power to require the disclosure of previous convictions
so that the court can decide if the accused has a good character to defend.

There will also be a right of appeal to the crown court against a decision
by magistrates to refuse a jury trial.

The move towards mandatory drug testing in police stations - already in
place for convicted criminals in prison and serving community sentences -
is designed to break the strong link between drug abuse and crime. Home
office research shows that around one third of all property crime is linked
to offenders trying to raise the cash to feed their heroin or cocaine habits.

When the measure was trailed at the Labour party conference it was
suggested that those tested positive for heroin or cocaine would be
remanded automatically into custody with a presumption that bail would not
be granted.

But government sources yesterday said that such positive test results were
now to be taken into account when the court made the decision whether to
give them bail.

Mr Straw has already indicated he does not expect everybody arrested to be
tested for drugs but that the police will have the discretion to use the
power to identify drug abusers.

The proposal in the crime and probation bill will also include plans to
expand referral schemes which give offenders access to drug treatment
services.

The same bill will also herald a major shake-up in the probation service,
including a possible change in name.

Probation is to become a single national unified organisation with existing
local probation committees replaced by a home office headquarters and area
boards. The number of probation areas is to be reduced so their boundaries
coincide with those of the police.

Probation staff are to be given new enforcement powers including the right
to impose a further punishment on a criminal who fails to comply with his
community service or probation order without the lengthy delays in going
back to court.

The bill will also give the home secretary powers to extend the electronic
tagging and monitoring scheme of offenders.

The sexual offences (amendment) bill, which brings in an equal age of
consent for gay and heterosexual sex, is to be reintroduced with the new
offence of abuse of trust. Mr Straw has threatened to invoke the parliament
act if the measure is blocked again by the House of Lords.