`Arrogant' Howard broke law

The Court of Appeal yesterday inflicted the latest and most damaging blow to Michael Howard, the Home Secretary, when it ruled he had abused his powers and flouted the will of Parliament over his new compensation scheme for the victims of violent crime.

By a two-to-one majority, the judges declared he had acted unlawfully when he implemented a tariff-based scheme without any reference to Parliament. It has been argued that the fixed rate scheme - which pays from pounds 1,000 for broken teeth to pounds 250,000 for those permanently disabled - will leave many of those with catastrophic injuries facing extreme financial hardship and unable to pay for the extra care they will need.

Labour and the Liberal Democrats seized upon the judgment and accused Mr Howard of arrogance and ``disgusting contempt'' for the victims of crime. Paddy Ashdown, the Liberal Democrat leader, said Mr Howard's position was increasingly untenable. ``The man who is meant to uphold law in this country has been shown to have abused it.''

Jack Straw, shadow Home Secretary, said it was yet another humiliating reversal for an ``already discredited Home Secretary''. He demanded a Commons statement when the House returns next week.

For Mr Howard, yesterday's condemnation by the courts could not have come at a worse time. He is still bruised after the IRA break-out and discovery of Semtex and guns at a top security prison. There have also been attacks from all quarters over the controversial Criminal Justice and Public Order Act and police reforms.

Mr Howard is to appeal to the Law Lords. But it was one of their number, Lord Ackner, who led the cross-party attack on the scheme and forced a humiliating amendment to the Criminal Justice Act.

The Government had barely patched up the damage caused by the Lords, by reinstating the tariff system, when Lord Bingham, Master of the Rolls, yesterday ruled that Mr Howard had ``acted unlawfully and abused his prerogative or common law powers''.

The appeal judges objected to the fact that Mr Howard had ignored a decision of Parliament in 1988 to put the old compensation scheme - in operation since 1964 - on a statutory basis. Instead he introduced a cheaper scheme using his powers under Crown prerogative without parliamentary approval. The judgment was a victory for the TUC and 10 individual unions and associations representing firefighters, teachers, prison officers, bank staff and others who face the risk of violence at work.

Defending the tariff scheme in the Commons recently, Mr Howard said the old system had become too expensive - pounds 165m last year and expected to reach pounds 500m by 2000. No responsible government could allow such costs to grow unchecked. But yesterday Roger Poole, assistant general secretary of Unison, said if the Government was concerned about the costs of compensating the victims of crime, the Home Secretary should tackle crime, not its victims.

United opposition, page 5

Law Report, page 15