7.—(1) If a person—

(a) who has been convicted of an offence,

(b) who after appeal against the conviction stands convicted of an offence, and

(c) who alleges that a new or newly-discovered fact shows that a miscarriage of justice has occurred in relation to the conviction,

petitions the Minister for Justice with a view to the Government advising the President to grant a pardon under Article 13.6 of the Constitution and no further proceedings are pending in relation to the appeal, the following provisions of this section shall apply.

(2) The Minister for Justice shall make or cause to be made such inquiries as he considers necessary and—

(a) if he is of opinion either—

(i) that the matters dealt with in the petition could appropriately be dealt with by way of an application to the Court pursuant to section 2, or

(ii) that a case has not been made out that a miscarriage of justice has occurred and that no useful purpose would be served by further investigation,

shall inform the petitioner accordingly and take no further action, and

(b) in any other case, shall recommend to the Government either—

(i) that it should advise the President to grant a pardon in respect of the offence of which the applicant was convicted, or

(ii) that it should appoint a committee pursuant to section 8 to inquire into and report on the case.

(3) In subsection (1) (c) the reference to a new fact is to a fact known to the convicted person at the time of the trial or appeal proceedings the significance of which was appreciated by him, where he alleges that there is a reasonable explanation for his failure to adduce evidence of that fact.

(4) The reference in subsection (1) (c) to a newly-discovered fact is to a fact discovered by or coming to the notice of the convicted person after the relevant appeal proceedings have been finally determined or a fact the significance of which was not appreciated by the convicted person or his advisers during the trial or appeal proceedings.

(5) References in subsections (1) and (2) to the Minister for Justice shall, in relation to a conviction by court-martial, be construed as references to the Minister for Defence.

(6) Nothing in this section shall affect any functions of the Minister for Justice in relation to a petition to him from a person other than a person mentioned in subsection (1) with a view to the Government advising the President to grant a pardon under Article 13.6 of the Constitution.