ABSTRACT
Under section 58(1) of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, ‘a person arrested and held in custody in a police station or other premises shall be entitled, if he so requests, to consult a solicitor privately at any time’. The right to legal advice is also protected under Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights.117 Delay in complying with a request to consult a lawyer is only permitted where the person is being held in connection with an indictable offence and where a senior officer has authorised the delay. The grounds on which delay may be authorised include reasonable grounds for believing that there will be interference with or harm to evidence; that exercising the right would lead to alerting other suspects who have not yet been arrested; or that exercising the right would hinder the recovery of any property obtained as a result of the offence.118
