# The Parole Board Rules 2019, Article 17C: Written determinations in proceedings involving withheld material


(1) If the Board proposes, in the determination of any proceedings involving material that has been withheld from the prisoner and the prisoner’s representative, to serve a single written decision on the parties, it must serve notice on the Secretary of State of its intention to do so before it serves any such decision on the prisoner and the prisoner’s representative.
(2) The Secretary of State may apply for the terms of the decision to be amended within 5 days of being served with notice under paragraph (1) if the Secretary of State considers that the terms of the decision would cause information to be disclosed and that such disclosure would be damaging to the interests provided for in rule 17(1).
(3) Where the Secretary of State makes an application under paragraph (2), the Secretary of State must at the same time serve on the special advocate—
(a) a copy of the application, and
(b) a copy of the notice served on the Secretary of State pursuant to paragraph (1).
(4) The Board must not serve a written decision on the prisoner or prisoner and their representative (where applicable) before the time for the Secretary of State to make an application under paragraph (2) has expired.
(5) If an application is not made within the period provided for in paragraph (2), the Board must, within a reasonable time, serve on the parties a written determination containing its decision and, if and to the extent that it is possible to do so without disclosing information contrary to the interests provided for in rule 17(1), the reasons for it.
(6) Where the determination under paragraph (5) does not include the full reasons for its decision, the Board must serve on the Secretary of State and the special advocate a separate decision including those reasons.
(7) Where the Board serves a separate decision under paragraph (6), the special advocate may apply to the Board to amend that determination and the determination under paragraph (6) on the grounds that the separate determination contains material the disclosure of which would not be contrary to the interests provided for in rule 17(1).
(8) The special advocate must serve a copy of any application under paragraph (7) on the Secretary of State.
(9) The Board must give the special advocate and the Secretary of State an opportunity to make representations on the application made by the special advocate under paragraph (7) and may determine the application under paragraph (7) with or without an oral hearing.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2019/1038/article/17C (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/parole-board-rules-2019/article-17C
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.