Member

The noble Baroness, Lady Smith, made points about the Atherton review and various other things we are trying to take forward. On equivalence of rank, we will always try to find a way of ensuring that a more senior or experienced officer is able to become president of the board—essentially, the chair of the panel—notwithstanding the fact that the judge advocate is always a civilian judge. The president of the board will always be someone of high rank, where possible. The amendment, which I know she supports, simply tries to extend the pool of available officers. We have every confidence that in the context of that panel, with the support of the judge advocate and its other lay members, there will be no intimidation from somebody of a senior rank when the president of the board is of a more junior rank. She will know that, although the change is being made, it cannot go below the rank of officer rank 6, which is essentially brigadier, air commodore and the equivalent rank in the Navy. It can go down to that—for want of a better way of putting it—but it cannot go below. The Committee can be reassured about that.