R (Walker) v Secretary of State for Justice

The House of Lords heard three appeals concerning prisoners who were serving indeterminate sentences for public protection (IPPs) under the Criminal Justice Act 2003. The appeals raised issues under public law and the European Convention on Human Rights. The first two appellants, Mr Lee and Mr Wells, were still in custody, while Mr James had been released. The Secretary of State for Justice admitted a breach of his public law duty to provide the resources necessary for the Parole Board to assess whether the appellants should be released. The central issue was whether the breach of duty entitled the appellants to be released or to damages for unlawful detention. The House of Lords held that the breach of duty did not render the appellants' detention unlawful or entitle them to damages. The appellants' detention was lawful until the Parole Board decided they should be released. The House rejected the argument that the appellants' continued detention violated their Convention rights under article 5(1) and 5(4). The court held that article 5(4) required only that the Parole Board be available to decide whether the appellants should be released, not that the Secretary of State provide them with the means to demonstrate their safety for release. The appeals were dismissed.