Section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 (c. 23) (“the Act”) provides that where a witness’s video recorded evidence in chief has been admitted under section 27 of the Act the court may direct that the video recorded cross-examination and re-examination of that witness may also be admitted as evidence.

Article 2 makes provision for the coming into force of section 28 of the Act on 2nd January 2017, but only for the purposes of proceedings before the Crown Court sitting at Kingston-upon-Thames, Leeds or Liverpool, where the witness is aged 16 or 17 at the time of the hearing.

Section 28 was previously brought into force by SI 2013/3236 in relation to these courts, where the witness was eligible by virtue of section 16(1)(a) and was under the age of 16 at the time of the hearing, or by virtue of section 16(1)(b) of the Act, owing to an incapacity.

The effect of this Order is therefore to expand the availability of section 28 directions in these courts, so that they may also be made in relation to witnesses who are aged 16 or 17 at the time of the hearing.