Extradition Act 2003: UK Government issue updated draft of the Codes of Practice

On 16^th August 2021, the UK Government issued an updated draft of the revised Extradition Act 2003 (‘the 2003 Act’) Codes of Practice (‘the draft Codes’), which govern the exercise of police powers in Part 4 of the 2003 Act, and provide guidance on the operation of police powers in extradition cases in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The draft Codes were published in response to the government’s consultation, held between 17 November and 14 December 2020, and provide minor clarificatory amendments on the new power of provisional arrest introduced by the Extradition (Provisional Arrest) Act 2020 (‘the 2020 Act’) for specified category 2 territories under section 74A of the 2003 Act. The updates include setting out how arrests are to be carried out in relation to the new power and on the procedural rights for individuals subject to extradition more generally.

The draft Codes, which were issued pursuant to the Secretary of States obligations under the Extradition Act 2003 (Codes of Practice Transit Code of Practice) Order 2021, are reported as now being subject to the “relevant parliamentary procedure” in order to be published and brought into operation.