Heaney (Kevin) Application for leave to apply for Judicial Review and in the matter of decisions of the Ministry of Justice, The Department of Justice for Northern Ireland, The Executive Committee of The Northern Ireland Assembly and the Executive Office
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Scoffield J |
| Judgment Date | 07 February 2022 |
| Neutral Citation | [2022] NIQB 8 |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Northern Ireland) |
| Date | 07 February 2022 |
1
Neutral Citation No: [2022] NIQB 8
Judgment: approved by the Court for handing down
(subject to editorial corrections)*
Ref: SCO11754
ICOS No: 21/064871/01
Delivered: 07/02/2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
___________
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION
(JUDICIAL REVIEW)
___________
IN THE MATTER OF APPLICATION BY KEVIN HEANEY
FOR LEAVE TO APPLY FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW
AND IN THE MATTER OF DECISIONS OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE, THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE FOR NORTHERN IRELAND, THE EXECUTIVE
COMMITTEE OF THE NORTHERN IRELAND ASSEMBLY AND THE
EXECUTIVE OFFICE
___________
Ronan Lavery QC and Bobbie Rea (instructed by ML White Solicitors) for the applicant
Tony McGleenan QC and Philip McAteer (instructed by the Crown Solicitor’s Office) for
the Ministry of Justice and (instructed by the Departmental Solicitor’s Office) for the
remaining proposed respondents
___________
SCOFFIELD J
Introduction
[1] This is an application for leave to apply for judicial review and for interim
relief which has been brought on with a degree of urgency because, at its root, the
applicant is seeking relief which will give rise to his release from prison. The core of
his complaint is that the custodial period of his sentence of imprisonment for a
terrorist offence has been wrongly increased as a result of the amendments made by
the Counter Terrorism and Sentencing Act 2021 (and in particular section 30 of, and
Schedule 3 to, that Act). This contention is supported by a decision of the Court of
Appeal, exercising its criminal appellate jurisdiction, in which the applicant and
others were granted a declaration of incompatibility under section 4 of the Human
Rights Act 1998 (“HRA”) in respect of the relevant provisions of the 2021 Act.
[2] This application for leave to apply for judicial review was originally
commenced in August 2021 but was stayed at that stage pending the outcome of the
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2 cases
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Marks (Terence) Application for Judicial Review and in the matter of a decision of The Minister for Justice
...may be pursued or potentially achieved. For instance, I dealt with a related application for judicial review in Re Heaney’s Application [2022] NIQB 8. [13] For the applicant’s part, he has sought the exercise of the RPM from the respondent Minister in respect of that period of imprisonment ......
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Minister for Justice & Equality v Walsh
...by the Court of Appeal's indication/comments. This culminated in the decision Mr. Justice Scoffield on 7 February 2022: Re: Heaney [2022] NIQB 8. 41 . Mr. Justice Scoffield's “introduction” to the case is helpful in summarising the aim of the proceedings: “The applicant now seeks to breathe......