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1135067

	registered interest
	date	26/06/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Abortion: Autism and Learning Disability
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many times the Court of Protection has ordered the termination of a pregnancy in a woman with a learning disability or autism in the last ten years; and on how many occasions this has been against the wishes of the woman or her family.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Hollins
	uin	HL16694
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 09/07/2019 14:48:10 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	4190 label Biography information for Baroness Hollins

1134671

	registered interest
	date	25/06/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Abortion: Mental Illness
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Court of Appeal ruling overturning the decision of the Court of Protection to allow a mentally ill woman to be given an abortion against her wishes; what implications they consider that case to have for the rights of those with learning disabilities to become parents; and what steps, if any, they intend to take in the light of the Court of Appeal's ruling.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16638
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2019 answer text <p>This is an extremely difficult and sensitive case, and the Government will consider the Court of Appeal judgment carefully.</p><p> </p><p>The Court of Protection hears cases about some of the most vulnerable people in society, making decisions about personal welfare – including serious medical treatment - where the person lacks capacity to do so for themselves. In doing so it must follow the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). In particular the MCA stipulates that decisions must be in the person’s best interests, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, including the wishes, feelings, beliefs and values of the person, and must be the least restrictive of their rights and freedoms.</p><p> </p><p>It is right that such serious and difficult decisions – particularly where there is disagreement about what is in the person’s best interests - are made by the independent judiciary.</p><p> </p><p>The statutory MCA Code of Practice provides practical guidance on the operation of the MCA and is currently under review. We have sought input from a range of interested stakeholders through a call for evidence in January and propose to consult on a revised Code towards the end of this year.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 10/07/2019 11:30:53 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1122317

	registered interest
	date	23/04/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Administration of Justice
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What assessment he has made of the effect of recent changes in courts staffing and courts closures on access to justice.
	tabling member constituency	Heywood and Middleton
	tabling member printed	Liz McInnes
	uin	910445
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2019 answer text <p>Any decision to close a court is not taken lightly, but in circumstances where 41% of our courts operated in 2016-17 at half their available capacity and where we are investing £1 billion in courts and bringing them up to date, the Ministry of Justice has to think carefully about where our court resources are most effectively and efficiently spent.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer question first answered 23/04/2019 16:35:26 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
	tabling member	4342 label Biography information for Liz McInnes

1105232

	registered interest
	date	26/03/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Administration of Justice: Females
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure the adequacy of funding for a national network of support services for women in the criminal justice system.
	tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
	tabling member printed	Frank Field
	uin	237018
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/04/2019 answer text <p>The Female Offender Strategy sets out our vision of fewer women entering the justice system and serving short custodial sentences, and better conditions for those women in custody. Support for women to help them address the often complex needs that underlie their offending is essential to delivering the vision of the female offender strategy. This is why, across government, we are investing £5 million of funding over two years in community provision for women. This funding will help to sustain and enhance existing services, and will create new services where there is currently a gap.</p><p> </p><p>Services such as women’s centres receive funding from a range of sources. We will look at the scope to increase the sustainability of the sector as we take forward implementation of our strategy.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 03/04/2019 16:21:10 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
	tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1108787

	registered interest
	date	01/04/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Administration of Justice: Rural Areas
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the ability of people living in rural areas to access justice.
	tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
	tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
	uin	239263
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>Based on the most recent data available, the table below shows how many firms (and where a firm has multiple branches, the total number of offices) were active in any given year providing legal aid services in criminal matters.</p><p> </p><p>Numbers of both firms and offices have fluctuated due to a number of factors, including mergers and acquisitions, trends in the rates of criminal offending, and the impact of other policies and market conditions.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>2010/11</p></td><td><p>2011/12</p></td><td><p>2012/13</p></td><td><p>2013/14</p></td><td><p>2014/15</p></td><td><p>2015/16</p></td><td><p>2016/17</p></td><td><p>2017/18</p></td><td><p>2018/19</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Firms</p></td><td><p>1,861</p></td><td><p>1,722</p></td><td><p>1,656</p></td><td><p>1,603</p></td><td><p>1,517</p></td><td><p>1,512</p></td><td><p>1,388</p></td><td><p>1,314</p></td><td><p>1,271</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Offices</p></td><td><p>2,598</p></td><td><p>2,415</p></td><td><p>2,338</p></td><td><p>2,282</p></td><td><p>2,172</p></td><td><p>2,240</p></td><td><p>1,991</p></td><td><p>1,998</p></td><td><p>1,921</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The Legal Aid Agency measures capacity according to the type of scheme in question. For criminal legal aid, all Criminal Justice System Areas over England and Wales have firms of solicitors operating under a criminal legal aid contract, in addition to approximately 250 Duty Solicitor schemes providing advice and representation in Police Stations and Magistrates courts. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) monitors capacity across criminal legal aid contracts on an ongoing basis. Where issues are identified, the LAA takes action to ensure there is ongoing availability of criminal legal advice for the public.</p><p> </p><p>For civil legal aid, there is at least one firm operating in each ‘Procurement Area’ providing services in every category of law, save for the ‘Housing and Debt’ category. Of the 134 Procurement Areas for this category, 4 do not currently have a provider holding a Housing and Debt contract, representing over 97% coverage across England and Wales. The Legal Aid Agency has since undertaken a further tender to secure provision in the remaining areas. In addition to the Civil Legal Advice Telephone Service, offering legal services in a range of issues to those who need it, we are establishing a £5m innovation fund to help people access legal support wherever they are in England and Wales.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 239262 question first answered 04/04/2019 16:36:17 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
	tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1125061

	registered interest
	date	07/05/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Age of Criminal Responsibility
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission of 7 May 2019, Torture in the UK: update report, whether he has plans to bring forward legislative proposals to raise the age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	251270
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>We have no current plans to change the age of criminal responsibility. We believe that setting the age at 10 provides flexibility in dealing with young offenders and allows for early intervention in a child’s life with the aim of preventing subsequent offending. That is why there are a range of options available to the police to resolve offences and put in place interventions to prevent further offending. Furthermore, the particular needs of a child will be identified through assessment by the local multi-agency youth offending team who can refer them on to other services for further investigation and support.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 13/05/2019 16:32:59 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1079585

	registered interest
	date	01/03/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Aiding and Abetting: Children and Young People
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people under 18 years old are serving life sentences due to convictions under joint enterprise law.
	tabling member constituency	Huddersfield
	tabling member printed	Mr Barry Sheerman
	uin	227375
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/03/2019 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice only collects information on how many defendants are prosecuted and convicted for each offence in any given year. Information is not collated on whether a prosecution or conviction relied on the law of joint enterprise. Such information may be held on court records, but could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer question first answered 11/03/2019 17:36:43 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
	tabling member	411 label Biography information for Mr Barry Sheerman

1125411

	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	Aiding and Abetting: Ethnic Groups
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the ethnicity is of adults who are (a) charged and (b) convicted of joint enterprise in the latest period for which data is available.
	tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
	tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
	uin	251981
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>Joint enterprise is a common law doctrine that applies to any offence where more than one person is being charged and convicted of the same crime. The Ministry of Justice only collects information on the ethnicity of defendants that are prosecuted and convicted of specific criminal offences in England and Wales (i.e. murder, manslaughter, etc) in any given year. Information is not collated on whether a prosecution or conviction also relied on the law of joint enterprise. Such information may be held on court records, but could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard grouped question UIN 251982 question first answered 17/05/2019 12:12:19 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1125412

	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	Aiding and Abetting: Ethnic Groups
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the ethnicity is of defendants under the age of 18 who have been (a) charged and (b) convicted of joint enterprise in each of the last five years.
	tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
	tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
	uin	251982
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>Joint enterprise is a common law doctrine that applies to any offence where more than one person is being charged and convicted of the same crime. The Ministry of Justice only collects information on the ethnicity of defendants that are prosecuted and convicted of specific criminal offences in England and Wales (i.e. murder, manslaughter, etc) in any given year. Information is not collated on whether a prosecution or conviction also relied on the law of joint enterprise. Such information may be held on court records, but could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard grouped question UIN 251981 question first answered 17/05/2019 12:12:19 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1129670

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Alternatives to Prison
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to increase the use of alternatives to prison sentences.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
	uin	259852
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/06/2019 answer text <p>There is a case to abolish or restrict the use of sentences of six months or less, with some exceptions, and we are working towards having firm proposals by the summer.</p><p>The sentencing framework already gives courts the flexibility to select community order requirements which are a robust alternative to custody, and are tailored to address the specific issues that contribute to reoffending. Community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective in reducing reoffending, and therefore keeping the public safe. We must ensure the public and judiciary have confidence in effective community orders, including those which address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and substance misuse needs and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.</p><p>Confidence in community sentences starts with confidence in the probation services that deliver them and our probation reforms are designed to achieve this. Bringing all offender management responsibilities under the National Probation Service and having a more clearly defined role for the private and voluntary sectors in delivering interventions are intended to strengthen sentencer and public confidence in probation. Our changes will also ensure a wider range of rehabilitative programmes, so that courts can better tailor community sentences to the individual needs of offenders.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 10/06/2019 14:26:49 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham