Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1122871

	registered interest
	date	24/04/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Birmingham Prison
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Written Statement of 2 April 2019, Official Report HCWS1475 on HMP Birmingham, if he will list the new approaches that have been delivered by the private sector referred to in that Statement.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	247133
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>Privately-managed prisons have pioneered the use of modern technology to improve the running of establishments and help promote rehabilitation. This includes the development of in-cell telephony to help prisoners maintain ties with their families; interactive story-time activities between prisoners and their children; and the introduction of electronic kiosks, which allow prisoners to have greater control of managing their day-to-day lives. The use of body-worn video cameras was introduced by private prisons. Private prisons also have excellent facilities as standard, such as showers in cells, which it is not possible to provide in our older prisons.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 21/05/2019 14:58:51 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1123671

	registered interest
	date	29/04/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Appeals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Social Security and Child Support Tribunal appeals have taken longer than 52 weeks for a determination, in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	Easington
	tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
	uin	248645
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is provided in the table below:</p><p>SOCIAL SECURITY &amp; CHILD SUPPORT CLEARANCES 1<br>Period Number of clearances that exceeded 52 weeks from receipt<br>1 April 2013 - 31 March 2014 16,161<br>1 April 2014 - 31 March 2015 12,350<br>1 April 2015 - 31 March 2016 3,100<br>1 April 2016 - 31 March 2017 4,084<br>1 April 2017 - 31 March 2018 7,330<br>1 April 2018 - 31 December 2018 2 13,162</p><p>1. Data include hearings cleared with and without a Tribunal hearing</p><p>2. The latest period for which data are available. Provisional data and subject to further change</p><p>Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data that are available.</p><p> </p><p><br>It is important that appeals are heard as quickly as possible. Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) recognises there are delays in the system and it is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. This includes 250 judges across the First-tier Tribunal, 125 disability qualified members and up to 230 medical members.</p><p>In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals. Information on the new digital service can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appeal</p><p>We are also working with the Department for Work and Pensions to understand what could be done to reduce the number of appeals being submitted to the Tribunal, through their focus on improving decision-making and the mandatory reconsideration process.</p><p>These measures will increase the capacity of the Tribunal. As a result, the number of appeals outstanding in the Tribunal is starting to fall as the number of cases heard by the Tribunal outweigh those sent to the Tribunal. If this continues, over time, we expect the time it takes for the Tribunal to hear, and the age of, appeals to reduce.</p><p>The time taken for the Tribunal to hear an appeal is mainly driven by the number of appeals sent to the Tribunal and the capacity of the Tribunal to deal with them. The number of appeals sent to the Tribunal is directly affected by changes in welfare policy.</p><p>The time it takes the Tribunal to hear an appeal is calculated from the time it is sent to the Tribunal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached after an earlier hearing has been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned once again to the First-tier for its final disposal.</p><p>HMCTS is very sensitive to the needs of people who may be affected by waiting times for Tribunal hearings. Tribunal staff and judicial office-holders, are trained accordingly, with HMCTS’s reasonable adjustments policy and practice applied where appropriate. Guidance on the policy is published on GOV.UK. If an expedited hearing is sought, or where the Tribunal identifies a case which might benefit from an expedited hearing, a judge or caseworker will make a decision on the issue, taking all the circumstances of the case into account.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/05/2019 16:26:11 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1125245

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Prisoners' Release
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of prisoners who have been released in error in each of the last three years.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	252007
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>Information on releases in error are published as part of the HM Prison and Probation Service Annual Digest. The latest publication can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/annual-hm-prison-and-probation-service-digest-2017-to-2018</a></p><p> </p><p>Releases in error are rare and in the vast majority of cases offenders are returned to custody very quickly. We work closely with the police to recapture those at large and investigate each incident thoroughly to see what lessons can be learned.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 12:03:21 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1125294

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Courts: ICT
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Transform Justice blog entitled The secret room – who is listening to what in digital courts?, published on 11 April 2019, if he will make an assessment of the accuracy of reports in that blog that a secret video control room was placed in a court in Medway; and what information his Department hold on whether that is widespread practice in other courts.
	tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
	tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
	uin	251946
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>There is no secret video control room at Medway Magistrates’ Court.</p><p>There is a control room, not accessible to the public, where the coordination of participants and the connection and disconnection of video hearings to the courtroom takes place. This function is carried out by a HMCTS video court administrator. There are no other courts operating a control room across the criminal court estate.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 17/05/2019 12:13:37 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1125310

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Offenders: Electronic Tagging
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, who has the power to amend the conditions of (a) bail and (b) court orders which are the subject of a GPS tag.
	tabling member constituency	Shipley
	tabling member printed	Philip Davies
	uin	251950
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>Once an individual is produced before a court it is only the court that has the power to amend the conditions of bail and court orders which are the subject of a GPS tag.</p><p> </p><p>The police can impose (limited) bail conditions both pre-and post-charge prior to an individual being produced before a court, although this cannot extend to any form of electronic monitoring.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 12:05:25 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies

1125353

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the UK's declaration reserving the right to postpone the application of Article 7(a)(i) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights still applies; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
	tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
	uin	251970
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The UK remains a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.</p><p> </p><p>There remains one reservation in force under Article 7(a)(i) of the Covenant, in respect of Bermuda and the Crown Dependencies. The UK Government will review all reservations as part of the next periodic report under the Covenant, which is due in June 2021.</p><p> </p><p>The UK Government remains committed to the principle of equal pay and continues to work to eradicate the gender pay gap.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 13:04:40 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1125365

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Treatment Of, and Outcomes For, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Individuals in the Criminal Justice System Independent Review
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2019 to Question 235745 on Treatment of, and Outcomes for, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Individuals in the Criminal Justice System Independent Review, when the review of the Supreme Court's recommendations will be completed; and what steps will be taken to ensure that his Department complies with the Court's ruling.
	tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
	tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
	uin	251975
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>We are awaiting the Order from the Supreme Court setting out the instructions it has made in respect of the judgment. Once we have received this, we will come forward with proposals for reform in response to the judgment.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 11:40:17 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1125434

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Prisoners: Parents
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the prison population are parents.
	tabling member constituency	Lewisham, Deptford
	tabling member printed	Vicky Foxcroft
	uin	252094
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally to a sufficient degree of accuracy for release. It is not mandatory for offenders on arrival at prisons establishments to provide this information and the interface would not be able to differentiate search criteria in order to obtain this percentage.</p><p> </p><p>We are taking forward recommendations, including giving governors the budget and flexibility to spend their resources appropriately to help prisoners keep important family or significant other ties which occurred in October 2017. Prison Governors are working in partnership with family services providers to meet the identified needs of prisoners, including developing relationships for prisoners who do not have access to family for several reasons including leaving the social care system.</p><p> </p><p>We commissioned Lord Farmer to undertake a review on the importance of family engagement to reduce reoffending and prevent intergenerational crime, the recommendations from which we are now implementing. Lord Farmer is currently carrying out a further review on family ties, focusing on female offenders, which is expected to be published shortly</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 11:50:18 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	4491 label Biography information for Vicky Foxcroft

1125460

	registered interest
	date	08/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Judiciary: Youth Courts
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) district judges and (b) magistrates have been assigned to participate in youth courts in each year since 2010; and what proportion of those (i) district judges and (ii) magistrates were (A) women and (B) men.
	tabling member constituency	Wolverhampton North East
	tabling member printed	Emma Reynolds
	uin	252117
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>All salaried District Judges (Magistrates’ Court) are, following their appointment, trained and authorised to sit in the Youth Court. The number of judges on the 1st April in each year since 2010, male and female, is set out in the table below. Judicial statistics are not yet available for 1st April 2019.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2010</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2011</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2012</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2013</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2014</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2015</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2016</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2017</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2018</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Male</p></td><td><p>106</p></td><td><p>99</p></td><td><p>100</p></td><td><p>101</p></td><td><p>98</p></td><td><p>95</p></td><td><p>89</p></td><td><p>90</p></td><td><p>91</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Female</p></td><td><p>37</p></td><td><p>38</p></td><td><p>41</p></td><td><p>41</p></td><td><p>44</p></td><td><p>43</p></td><td><p>44</p></td><td><p>49</p></td><td><p>49</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Total</p></td><td><p>143</p></td><td><p>137</p></td><td><p>141</p></td><td><p>142</p></td><td><p>142</p></td><td><p>138</p></td><td><p>133</p></td><td><p>138</p></td><td><p>140</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Data on the number of magistrates assigned to youth court prior to October 2016 are not available and it would present a disproportionate expense to HMCTS to provide it. Data regarding youth magistrates is available from 1 April 2017. The data provided for magistrates are internal Management Information and not subject to the same quality checks as official statistics. The number of magistrates assigned to the Youth Court on 1st April 2017, 2018, and 2019, male and female, is set out in the table below.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2017</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2018</p></td><td><p>1<sup>st</sup> April 2019</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Male</p></td><td><p>1088</p></td><td><p>904</p></td><td><p>790</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Female</p></td><td><p>1289</p></td><td><p>1133</p></td><td><p>1066</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Total</p></td><td><p>2377</p></td><td><p>2037</p></td><td><p>1856</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 17/05/2019 13:02:33 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds

1125585

	registered interest
	date	09/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Appeals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the waiting time for benefits appeals from the 40 week average cited by HM Courts and Tribunal Service.
	tabling member constituency	Tynemouth
	tabling member printed	Sir Alan Campbell
	uin	252492
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>It is important that appeals are heard as quickly as possible. The Ministry of Justice recognises that there are delays in the system and is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. In the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) jurisdiction, 225 new medical members and 119 disability-qualified members have recently been appointed and are now hearing cases.</p><p>The SSCS jurisdiction will also benefit from the fact that 250 fee-paid judges and 100 salaried judges are being recruited across tribunals more widely. In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals and providing a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Information on the new digital service can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appeal" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appeal</a></p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 17/05/2019 10:58:52 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	529 label Biography information for Sir Alan Campbell