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1216834

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Treasury Solicitor's Department
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, what plans he has in place to ensure that the Treasury Solicitor - Bona Vacantia Division (a) undertakes investigations into the existence of wills for the deceased in an efficient and diligent manner and (b) administers estates in accordance with the law.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	63512
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>The Bona Vacantia Division (BVD) of the Government Legal Department (GLD) deals with the estates of people domiciled in England &amp; Wales who appear to have died without leaving a valid will or relatives entitled to share in their estates in priority to the Crown.</p><p> </p><p>Estates are administered by BVD in compliance with the law and the legal duties which apply to the administrators of estates.</p><p> </p><p>This includes making reasonable enquiries to establish whether the deceased has left a valid will or relatives entitled to share in the estate in priority to the Crown. Such enquiries include publishing details of the estate on BVD’s website and in the national and local press; making enquiries of banks, local solicitors and other parties and potentially conducting a search of the deceased’s property to establish whether they left a will.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 29/06/2020 10:52:45 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1216028

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Attorney General: Public Inquiries
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, if she will publish the (a) statutory and (b) non-statutory public inquiries being undertaken by her Department.
tabling member constituency	Ashfield
tabling member printed	Lee Anderson
uin	62604
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The Attorney General’s Office is not currently undertaking any statutory or non-statutory public inquiries.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 30/06/2020 14:50:08 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4743 label Biography information for Lee Anderson

1216448

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Attorney General: Public Opinion
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, how much his Department spent on (a) opinion polling and (b) focus groups each month since January 2019.
tabling member constituency	Bradford South
tabling member printed	Judith Cummins
uin	62482
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The Attorney General’s Office (AGO), Government Legal Department (GLD) and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) have not had any spending on opinion polling and focus groups since January 2019.</p><p> </p><p>The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has spent £9,000 in May 2019, £9,000 in Nov 2019, £3,421 in Mar 2020 and £9,000 in May 2020 on opinion polling. The CPS has not had any spending on focus groups since Jan 2019.</p><p> </p><p>The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) commissioned a short reputation survey from YouGov at a cost of £1100 + VAT on 30 May 2020 to inform and guide its work on communications and recruitment. There has been no other spending on opinion polls or focus groups since Jan 2019.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 30/06/2020 14:49:03 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4391 label Biography information for Judith Cummins

1205287

registered interest
date	18/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Sentencing: Appeals
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, how many (a) appeals and (b) successful appeals the Government has made against sentences on the basis of undue leniency, in each of the last 20 years.
tabling member constituency	North West Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Richard Holden
uin	61628
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2020 answer text <p>The statistics from 2000 are provided below. It should be noted that Attorney General’s Office does not hold accurate data prior to 2001 and we are not in possession of the data indicating the number of successful appeals for the year 2000.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>Appeals the Government has made against sentences on the basis of undue leniency</p></td><td><p>Successful appeals the Government has made against sentences on the basis of undue leniency</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2000</p></td><td><p>31</p></td><td><p>Data unavailable</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2001</p></td><td><p>147</p></td><td><p>90</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2002</p></td><td><p>148</p></td><td><p>94</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2003</p></td><td><p>96</p></td><td><p>78</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2004</p></td><td><p>105</p></td><td><p>66</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2005</p></td><td><p>108</p></td><td><p>67</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2006</p></td><td><p>144</p></td><td><p>104</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2007</p></td><td><p>76</p></td><td><p>53</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2008</p></td><td><p>59</p></td><td><p>46</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2009</p></td><td><p>84</p></td><td><p>58</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010</p></td><td><p>77</p></td><td><p>60</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>117</p></td><td><p>94</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012</p></td><td><p>82</p></td><td><p>62</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013</p></td><td><p>70</p></td><td><p>61</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014</p></td><td><p>122</p></td><td><p>106</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2015</p></td><td><p>136</p></td><td><p>102</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2016</p></td><td><p>180</p></td><td><p>130</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2017</p></td><td><p>173</p></td><td><p>137</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018</p></td><td><p>140</p></td><td><p>99</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2019</p></td><td><p>97</p></td><td><p>63</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 23/06/2020 14:28:46 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4813 label Biography information for Mr Richard Holden

1204491

registered interest
date	16/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Crown Prosecution Service: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, whether any (a) employed and (b) indirectly employed Crown Prosecution Service support staff have been furloughed.
tabling member constituency	Warrington North
tabling member printed	Charlotte Nichols
uin	59902
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>The CPS has not furloughed any support staff that it a) employs or b) indirectly employs.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 29/06/2020 10:58:55 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4799 label Biography information for Charlotte Nichols

1203693

registered interest
date	15/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Attorney General: Energy
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, how much energy her departmental buildings have used in (a) each of the last five years and (b) 2020 to date.
tabling member constituency	Kingston and Surbiton
tabling member printed	Sir Edward Davey
uin	59361
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) is unable to provide information on its building energy usage as it is currently sharing a building and there is no way of identifying the AGO’s energy usage.</p><p> </p><p>The Government Legal Department (GLD) and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI), who are GLD’s tenants, have used the following:</p><table><tbody><tr><td rowspan="2"><p>Energy Consumption (MWh)</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><td><p>2019-20</p></td><td><p>2020-to-date (end of May 2020)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>3,359</p></td><td><p>3,433</p></td><td><p>3,399</p></td><td><p>3,304</p></td><td><p>4,935</p></td><td><p>441</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>GLD publish this data in their Annual Report and Accounts. The 2019-20 publication can be found <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gld-ago-and-hmcpsi-annual-report-and-accounts-2019-to-2020" target="_blank">here</a>. Please note that the 2019-20 total also covers the period of commissioning, decommissioning and relocating GLD’s Head Office from One Kemble Street to 102 Petty France and consequently includes the GLD proportion of energy usage for both buildings during this period..</p><p> </p><p>The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have used the following:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td rowspan="2"><p>Energy Consumption (MWh)</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>3,359,251</p></td><td><p>3,433,141</p></td><td><p>3,399,001</p></td><td><p>3,303,878</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>CPS publish these figures in their Annual Report and Accounts. The 2018-19 publication can be found <a href="https://www.cps.gov.uk/publication/cps-annual-report-2018-19" target="_blank">here</a>. The figures for 2019-20 will be available in the CPS 2019-20 Annual Report and Accounts once it is published. Please note that The Ministry of Justice Estates Sustainability Team is responsible for reporting and managing sustainability in the CPS. Their data is gathered and validated by the Estates Sustainability Team and Building Research Establishment on behalf of DEFRA. The CPS is unable to report data from locations where property owners are not obliged to provide it. All data is UK only.</p><p> </p><p>The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) routinely publishes details of its energy use in their Annual Report and Accounts which can be found <a href="https://www.sfo.gov.uk/publications/corporate-information/annual-reports-accounts/" target="_blank">here</a>. The data for the most recent financial year 2019/2020 is due to be published in the near future.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 29/06/2020 10:57:53 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	188 label Biography information for Ed Davey

1202419

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Intestacy
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, whether she has made a recent assessment of levels of compliance among local authorities with the guidance issued by the Government Legal Department on the referral to the Bona Vacantia Division of estates of people who have died without (a) known entitled relatives and (b) leaving a will and instead passing the details directly to a single heir hunting firm.
tabling member constituency	Bath
tabling member printed	Wera Hobhouse
uin	58045
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/06/2020 answer text <p>The Bona Vacantia Division (BVD) of the Government Legal Department (GLD) deals with the estates of people domiciled in England &amp; Wales who appear to have died without leaving a valid will or relatives entitled to share in their estates in priority to the Crown. Estates which potentially fall to be dealt with as bona vacantia may be referred to BVD by a variety of routes, for example, banks, other financial institutions, solicitors or members of the public.</p><p> </p><p>There is no statutory obligation to refer estates to BVD but guidance on the referral process and the circumstances in which a referral will be accepted are published on BVD’s website (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/bona-vacantia" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/bona-vacantia</a>). It is for local authorities to determine whether an estate should be referred to BVD.</p><p> </p><p>In 2017-2018, 2768 estates were referred to BVD of which 909 were referred by local authorities. In 2018-2019, 1971 estates were referred to BVD of which 575 were referred by local authorities.</p><p>In 2019-2020, 2336 estates were referred to BVD of which 561 were referred by local authorities</p><p> </p><p>GLD has no responsibility for overseeing local authorities or their compliance with guidance issued by GLD about the handling of estates. Such information – including whether an estate has been referred to the Bona Vacantia Division of GLD, or whether the local authority has instructed an heir hunter – will be held by the particular local authority concerned.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 24/06/2020 16:20:38 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4602 label Biography information for Wera Hobhouse

1202420

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Intestacy
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, if she will make it her policy to strengthen the guidance issued by the Government Legal Department to local authorities on handling the estates of people who have died without (a) known entitled relatives and (b) leaving a will to ensure that they refer all eligible estates as soon as possible after death to the Bona Vacantia Division and do not pass the details directly to a single heir hunting firm.
tabling member constituency	Bath
tabling member printed	Wera Hobhouse
uin	58046
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/06/2020 answer text <p>The Bona Vacantia Division of the Government Legal Department (GLD) handles the estates of people who die without known entitled relatives, and without leaving a will. There is no statutory obligation to refer estates to GLD. However, GLD publishes guidance on the matter. In addition, local authorities can and do seek advice from GLD about the referral of specific cases.</p><p> </p><p>GLD does not provide advice to local authorities on the use of heir hunters.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 24/06/2020 16:23:59 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4602 label Biography information for Wera Hobhouse

1202467

registered interest
date	10/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Attorney General: Carers
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, how many staff in her Office had caring responsibilities in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Kingston and Surbiton
tabling member printed	Sir Edward Davey
uin	57889
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2020 answer text <p>The Annual Civil Service People Survey includes a question on caring responsibilities. The affirmative responses to this question for the Government Legal Department (GLD), Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and Serious Fraud Office (SFO) are listed below. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate (HMCPSI) responses are not included due to the small number of staff and the risk of individuals being identified.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that figures collected from the People Survey may not fully represent the number of carers as it is reliant on responses to the question. The CPS and SFO do not hold records of the responses to the question for all of the past five years. The CPS cannot provide data before 2018, the SFO cannot provide data before 2019 and GLD is also unable to provide data for 2018 as those data stores are no longer accessible and records were not held by the departments. Please also note that the wording of the question in 2016 and 2019 were different and the higher figures are likely due to the inclusion of childcare responsibility in those years.</p><p> </p><p>Government Legal Department (GLD):</p><p>2015 – 266 out of 1,602 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p>2016 – 580 out of 1,530 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p>2017 – 300 out of 1,780 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p>2018 – No data</p><p>2019 – 482 out of 2,214 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p> </p><p>Serious Fraud Office (SFO):</p><p>2015 – No data</p><p>2016 – No data</p><p>2017 – No data</p><p>2018 – No data</p><p>2019 – 84 out of 448 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p> </p><p>Crown Prosecution Service (CPS):</p><p>2015 – No data</p><p>2016 – No data</p><p>2017 – No data</p><p>2018 – 1,359 out of 3,974 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p><p>2019 – 1,102 out of 3,720 who responded stated they had caring responsibilities</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 23/06/2020 14:30:40 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	188 label Biography information for Ed Davey

1198010

registered interest
date	01/06/2020
answering body	Attorney General
answering dept id	88
answering dept short name	Attorney General
answering dept sort name	Attorney General
hansard heading	Domestic Abuse: Prosecutions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Attorney General, what discussions he has had with the CPS on the capacity to deal with the increase in domestic violence cases during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Warwick and Leamington
tabling member printed	Matt Western
uin	52354
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/06/2020 answer text <p>The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is working closely with colleagues across the Criminal Justice System to ensure that these offences continue to be brought to justice. Cases are still being referred to the CPS for charging decisions, trials are being listed and domestic abuse cases are treated as a high priority.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS has worked with police colleagues to introduce an Interim Charging Protocol to ensure that the most serious cases are prioritised effectively and put before the courts at the earliest opportunity. The CPS is committed to working closely with CJS partners and the third sector to make sure victims and witnesses remain at the heart of the process.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 08/06/2020 14:19:25 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
tabling member	4617 label Biography information for Matt Western