The Director of Public Prosecution

(1) There shall be a Director of Public Prosecutions, whose office shall be a public office. (2) The Director of Public Prosecutions shall have power in any criminal case in which he or she considers it desirable so to do— (a) to institute and undertake criminal proceedings against any person before any court (other than a court-martial) in respect of any offence alleged to have been committed by that person; (b) to take over and continue any criminal proceedings which have been instituted or undertaken by any other person or authority; and (c) subject to subsection (5) to discontinue at any stage before judgment is delivered any criminal proceedings instituted or undertaken by himself or herself or any other person or authority. (3) Subject to section 101 (2), the powers conferred on the Director of Public Prosecutions by subsection (2) (b) and (c) shall be vested in him or her to the exclusion of any other person or authority and whenever exercised, reasons for the exercise shall be provided to the Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly within ten days: Provided that where any other person or authority has instituted criminal proceedings, nothing in this subsection shall prevent the withdrawal of those proceedings by or at the instance of that person or authority and with the leave of the court. [1 of 1997; 13 of 2001] (4) For the purposes of this section, any appeal from any judgment in any criminal proceedings before any court, or any case stated or question of law reserved to any other court for the purpose of any such proceedings, shall be deemed to be part of those proceedings. (5) The Director of Public Prosecutions shall not exercise the power under subsection (2) (c) to discontinue proceedings with respect to any appeal by a person convicted in any criminal proceedings or to any case stated or question of law reserved at the instance of such a person. [1 of 1997; 13 of 2001]