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1179805

registered interest
date	24/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Family Conciliation Services
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to increase legal aid pay rates for family mediation services.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
uin	19946
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>Legal aid remains available for mediation in certain family disputes, where the parties meet the eligibility criteria. The latest published Legal Aid Statistics show that in family mediation, Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings (MIAMs) assessments increased by 20% in the last quarter compared to the same quarter in the previous year.</p><p> </p><p>In the Legal Support Action Plan, we committed to launching a campaign to raise awareness of the full breadth of legal support available, including legal aid.</p><p> </p><p>We work closely with the Family Mediation Council, and support Family Mediation through regular signposting and communications. We also attend the Family Mediation Council Standards Board which helps set the standards for mediators to ensure individuals get a quality service. We recently highlighted Family Mediation Week in January 2020 through social media channels.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 19947 question first answered 27/02/2020 14:11:27 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

1179806

registered interest
date	24/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Family Conciliation Services
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 support small family mediation businesses.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
uin	19947
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>Legal aid remains available for mediation in certain family disputes, where the parties meet the eligibility criteria. The latest published Legal Aid Statistics show that in family mediation, Mediation Information and Assessment Meetings (MIAMs) assessments increased by 20% in the last quarter compared to the same quarter in the previous year.</p><p> </p><p>In the Legal Support Action Plan, we committed to launching a campaign to raise awareness of the full breadth of legal support available, including legal aid.</p><p> </p><p>We work closely with the Family Mediation Council, and support Family Mediation through regular signposting and communications. We also attend the Family Mediation Council Standards Board which helps set the standards for mediators to ensure individuals get a quality service. We recently highlighted Family Mediation Week in January 2020 through social media channels.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 19946 question first answered 27/02/2020 14:11:27 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

1180004

registered interest
date	24/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Legal Representation: Death
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plans to support access to non-means tested legal representation in cases of state-related death.
tabling member constituency	North Durham
tabling member printed	Mr Kevan Jones
uin	19769
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>The Government’s Review of Legal Aid for Inquests published on 7 February 2019 found that representation for bereaved families is not necessary at the vast majority of inquests because the process is designed to establish the truth and learn lessons and cannot apportion blame.</p><p> </p><p>The Government realises, however, that there may be some instances where legal representation is required at inquests and funding may be available through the Exceptional Case Funding scheme (ECF). The decision to provide funding under ECF is taken by the Legal Aid Agency which makes its decisions independently from political and Government influence. The Government’s Legal Support Action Plan published on 7 February 2019 following the post implementation review of LASPO, includes a commitment to simplify the ECF scheme to ensure it works as effectively as possible for those who need it. We’re also making changes to ensure there is more support for bereaved families including making improvements to guidance and advice literature to improve understanding and awareness of the availability of legal aid for inquests.</p><p> </p><p>The evidence that we gathered as part of our Review for Legal Aid for Inquests will also be considered as part of the Legal Aid Means Test Review, which is looking at the thresholds for legal aid entitlement and their interaction with the wider criteria. This comprehensive review is due to conclude in the summer of 2020, followed by a public consultation on potential policy changes.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 27/02/2020 14:50:55 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	1438 label Biography information for Mr Kevan Jones

1178499

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Sobriety Orders
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the voluntary sector about how they might assist with the roll-out of the alcohol, abstinence and monitoring requirement across England and Wales.
tabling member printed	Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe
uin	HL1635
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>The legislation required to introduce alcohol abstinence and monitoring requirements in England and Wales is still subject to approval by Parliament. As yet, we have not had any discussions with the voluntary sector about how it could assist. More widely, we are engaged in ongoing dialogue with the voluntary sector around support for offenders with addiction issues.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 27/02/2020 14:05:55 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	3335 label Biography information for Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe

1178534

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Family Proceedings
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to publish the results of their consultation Assessing risk of harm to children and parents in private law children cases, which closed on 27 August 2019; whether they intend to publish any provisional findings of the panel appointed to conduct the consultation; and if so, when.
tabling member printed	Baroness Penn
uin	HL1670
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>The panel assessing the risk of harm to children and parents in private law cases has been meeting regularly to discuss the wealth of evidence collected from 1,200 individuals and organisations, and is in the process of finalising its report. It is right that it takes the time to analyse this data and to consider the recommendations for how the family courts can be reformed to improve the experiences of victims of harm. A full report outlining the findings and recommended next steps will be published this spring. The Government will publish a response at the same time setting out the steps we will take to reform the family courts.</p><p> </p><p>After the panel completed the call for evidence in Autumn 2019, the Ministry of Justice published a Progress Update on 23 October. The Progress Update included provisional findings from the panel. This has been attached and can also be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/assessing-risk-of-harm-to-children-and-parents-in-private-law-children-cases.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 27/02/2020 14:30:09 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4726 label Biography information for Baroness Penn

1178535

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Domestic Abuse
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what further consideration they have given to the recommendation of the report by the Joint Committee on the Draft Domestic Abuse Bill, Draft Domestic Abuse Bill (HL Paper 378, session 2017–19), published on 14 June 2019, to extend the range of evidence accepted for the automatic prohibition of cross-examination by perpetrators of domestic abuse; and whether that recommendation will be reflected in the forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill.
tabling member printed	Baroness Penn
uin	HL1671
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>We indicated in our initial response to the Joint Committee’s report, published in July 2019, that we would publish a further response in due course addressing around ten recommendations where we needed more time to fully consider the Committee’s proposals. This included their recommendation in respect of the scope of the automatic prohibition on cross-examination in person in family proceedings. We aim to publish that further response alongside the Domestic Abuse Bill. As the Leader of the House of Commons has indicated (Official Report, House of Commons, 23 January 2020, column 423), we expect to re-introduce the Bill ahead of the Easter recess.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 27/02/2020 14:11:49 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4726 label Biography information for Baroness Penn

1177957

registered interest
date	12/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Homicide: Convictions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the total number of offenders convicted of homicide involving children were (a) men and (b) women in the last three years.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	1210
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>Data on the number of defendants prosecuted and convicted of murder up to 31 December 2018, is published and available in the “Outcomes by offence data tool” at:</p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802314/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2018.xlsx" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802314/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2018.xlsx</a></p><p> </p><p>Detailed information on the age of the victim and broader circumstances may be held on individual court records but to identify such cases would incur disproportionate costs.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 27/02/2020 15:36:56 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies

1177958

registered interest
date	12/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Sentencing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) men and (b) women received each sentencing outcome for each type of offence in each police force area in the most recent year for which information is available; and what the average custodial sentence length was for (i) men and (ii) women for each offence type in each police force area.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	1211
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>Information up to December 2018 on sentencing outcomes relating to specific offences and police force area is published in the “Principal offence proceedings and outcomes by Home Office offence code data tool” at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2018</a>.</p><p> </p><p>To obtain the information requested, in the Pivot Table Fields:</p><ul><li>To view data for the latest year, drag ‘Year of Appearance’ to the Filters field and select “2018”;</li><li>To view data for males and females, drag ‘Sex’ into the Columns field; and</li><li>Drag ‘Offence Group’ and ‘Police Force Area’ into the Rows field.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The number of individuals who received each sentencing outcome, and the average custodial sentence length, for each offence type by police force area will then be shown in the table.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 27/02/2020 15:41:46 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies

1177959

registered interest
date	12/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Squatting: Business Premises
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of squatting in commercial premises since the introduction of the criminal provisions contained in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	1212
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice does not collect data on the trends in the level of squatting in commercial premises.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 27/02/2020 15:44:03 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies

1177960

registered interest
date	12/02/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Reoffenders
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offenders released on licence following a life sentence have committed (a) homicide and (b) other offences in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Shipley
tabling member printed	Philip Davies
uin	1213
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/02/2020 answer text <p>Serious further offences are very rare. Fewer than 0.5% of offenders under statutory supervision are charged with a serious further offence.</p><p>An offender sentenced to life imprisonment is eligible for release on life licence only once he has completed the minimum term (tariff) specified by the Court at the point of sentence. It falls to the independent Parole Board to determine whether to release a life sentence prisoner who has completed his minimum term and the Board will direct release only where it is satisfied that it is no longer necessary for the purposes of public protection for the prisoner to remain confined.</p><p> </p><p>The Ministry of Justice does not keep the figures requested in relation to (b) other offences and to obtain them would incur disproportionate cost. The Ministry of Justice does capture however,</p><p>the more serious further offences (SFOs) by means of the Probation SFO Review Procedures. In accordance with those Procedures, the National SFO Team in HM Prison and Probation Service is notified of an offender subject to statutory probation supervision appearing in court charged with a qualifying offence under Probation Instruction 2018 06</p><p><a href="https://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/offenders/psipso/psi-2018/pi-06-2018-sfo-procedures.doc.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/offenders/psipso/psi-2018/pi-06-2018-sfo-procedures.doc.pdf</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Accordingly, there are published statistics on convictions for an SFO on the part of an offender on life licence, arising from notifications to the National SFO Team between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2018. I have provided the link below. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/serious-further-offences" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/serious-further-offences</a>.</p><p> </p><p>We will publish SFO conviction data for 2018/19 in October 2020.</p><p> </p><p>The table below shows these figures broken down by homicide and other serious offences for 2015- 2018 which is the most recent available data in the last five years.</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td colspan="2"><p><strong>Serious Further Offence (SFO) type </strong></p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of offenders on life sentence who committed homicide</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of offenders on life sentence who committed other serious further offences</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2015 - 2016</strong></p></td><td><p>2</p></td><td><p>4</p></td><td><p><strong>6</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2016 - 2017</strong></p></td><td><p>2</p></td><td><p>4</p></td><td><p><strong>6</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2017 - 2018</strong></p></td><td><p>5</p></td><td><p>7</p></td><td><p><strong>12</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>9</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>15</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>24</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><ol><li>Data is taken from published data which captures serious further offending notified to the national SFO Team, HMPPS up until 31/03/2018.</li><li>Data is derived from the date of SFO notification to HMPPS. The serious further offence could have been committed prior to the timeframe of the published data.</li><li>This figure only includes convictions for serious further offences by life sentence prisoners on supervision that have been notified to the national SFO Team, HMPPS.</li><li>The data provided are provisional figures subject to change when any outstanding cases are concluded at court.</li><li>The data also includes cases where the offender committed suicide or died prior to the trial, where a Court has subsequently ruled that they were responsible.</li><li>Data Sources and Quality. We have drawn these figures from administrative IT systems which, as with some large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.</li><li>The data for homicide would include manslaughter and other serious further offences involving death. The figures for homicide in this answer all relate to convictions for murder.</li></ol><p> </p><p> </p><p>14 offenders have been sentenced to life in the last five years who had received one or more previous life sentence on a separate occasion.</p><p> </p><p>Section 21 of Criminal Justice Act 2003 sets out the starting point for the sentencing Judge to impose a whole life tariff in cases where an offender has been previously convicted of murder.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 1215 question first answered 27/02/2020 15:34:50 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	1565 label Biography information for Sir Philip Davies