A: Under current law, a defendant has the right to bail unless there is sufficient reason not to grant it. The main reasons for refusing bail according to the Bail Act 1976 are that there are substantial grounds for believing that the defendant (1) will flee; (2) will commit further offenses while on bail; or (3) will interfere with witnesses. Conditions may be applied to the granting of bail, such as living at a particular address or, rarely, paying an amount into court or having someone act as surety. Release on bail is sometimes referred to as "police bail," where the release was by the police rather than by a court. The alternative to being granted bail is being remanded into custody (also called being "held on remand").
