Day 076 - 18 Jan 95 - Page 18

     
     1   MR. MORRIS:  He is also a representative of the Royal Hospital
     2        Wards Residents Association or a serving officer of that
     3        Association, so he has been giving evidence in that
     4        capacity as well.
     5
     6   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, that makes not the slightest bit of
     7        difference.
     8
     9   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No, it does not make any difference to his
    10        status as a witness, I am afraid.
    11
    12   MS. STEEL:  So, all McDonald's executives now cannot give
    13        evidence about anything that goes on in the company which
    14        is not directly within their own knowledge which they have
    15        been doing consistently throughout this trial.
    16
    17   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  We are hearing Mr. McIntyre now.  You present
    18        an argument to that effect in due course in relation to
    19        evidence which I have heard in the past.  Raise your
    20        objection if a similar situation occurs in the future.  We
         are concerned with Mr. McIntyre's evidence today.
    22
    23   MS. STEEL:  I feel that it is unfair that our witnesses are
    24        being treated in a different way to the Plaintiffs'
    25        witnesses, that somehow they are not allowed to represent
    26        the views of other people; whereas the company can say what
    27        they like about what the company thinks without giving any
    28        direct knowledge.
    29
    30   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  You present -- I cannot keep on saying it --
    31        it in due course and if you have a valid point on it, I
    32        will not take what is said into consideration in reaching
    33        the decisions I have to reach in this case.  I cannot give
    34        you any more encouragement to get on with what Mr. McIntyre
    35        can tell me.
    36
    37   MR. MORRIS:  It just always happens that our witnesses get
    38        broken up in this way.
    39
    40   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  It may be because there have been occasions
         when you could have made objection -- I have not one
    42        particularly in mind at the moment -- but have not.  But,
    43        so be it.  We have to deal with each witness as they are in
    44        the witness box.  The fact that something did or did not
    45        happen during a previous witness's statement cannot change
    46        the law of evidence as it applies to the witness who is in
    47        the witness box at the moment.
    48
    49   MR. MORRIS (To the witness):  When the environment/index.html">litter issue came up at
    50        the Residents Association meetings at which you were 
    51        present and you took part, did you, in votes that were 
    52        taken? 
    53        A.  Yes.
    54
    55   Q.   When there was a vote relevant to McDonald's responsibility
    56        for environment/index.html">litter in the area, was it usually a closed vote,
    57        unanimous ------
    58        A.  We do not vote, I am sorry.
    59
    60   Q.   You do not?