This guidance replaces both the previous Witness Protection and Anonymity legal guidance and the Director’s Guidance on Witness Anonymity 2009.
The overarching principle of criminal justice is that the defendant must receive a fair trial. The prosecution has a vital role to play in delivering fair trials. Where the prosecution can only present its case in a way which denies the defendant’s right to a fair trial, it is under a duty to stop the case, no matter how serious the allegation may be.
The principle of a fair and public trial is enshrined in Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which includes:
“(1) In the determination of his civil rights and obligations or of any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law….
(3) Everyone charged with a criminal offence has the following minimum rights:
https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/witness-protection-and-anonymity
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(d) to examine or have examined witnesses against him…”
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