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1127105

registered interest
date	16/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Extortion: Prosecutions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many successful prosecutions have been brought for the offence of blackmail against people that demanded money to leave sites which they are occupying illegally in each year since 2010.
tabling member constituency	Chesterfield
tabling member printed	Toby Perkins
uin	255320
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>Information regarding prosecutions and convictions for blackmail offences from 2010 to 2018 can be found at the following link –</p><p> </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>Filter the ‘Offence’ field to ’35 Blackmail’ to obtain these figures. The total number of defendants proceeded against as well as those convicted of blackmail for the 2008-2018 decade will appear in the pivot table.</p><p> </p><p>However, specific information regarding blackmail offences, such as the offence of blackmail against people that demanded money to leave sites which they were occupying illegally, may be held on court record. But to be able to identify these cases, as they are not held centrally, we would have to access individual court records which would be of disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 21/05/2019 10:40:49 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
tabling member	3952 label Biography information for Mr Toby Perkins

1127183

registered interest
date	16/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Mental Health Services
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of prison officers have received training on when to refer a person for mental health support.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	255325
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>Over 14,000 staff have already received the new suicide and self-harm reduction training which includes a module on Mental Health Awareness, in addition to the safer custody training already provided across the estate.</p><p> </p><p>Prison Officer Entry Level Training (POELT) is a mandatory 12 week programme for all new entrant officers to give them the knowledge and skills they need to carry out their role. There are a number of sessions on Mental Health within this training, including: ‘Introduction to Mental Health’, ‘Introduction to Suicide and Self Harm (SASH) Prevention’ and ‘Personality Disorders.’ This training will enable staff to identify any concerns and submit the appropriate referral to healthcare professionals.</p><p> </p><p>The following e-learning training is also available on Civil Service Learning for all staff working in Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service:</p><ul><li>Mental Health Conditions and Dementia: Support for Customers</li><li>Mental Health at Work</li><li>Wellbeing, Resilience and Stress</li></ul><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 21/05/2019 15:40:38 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1127184

registered interest
date	16/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisoners: Death and Self-harm
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 reduce levels of self-harm and deaths in custody among the prison population.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	255326
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>Prisons should be places of safety and reform. We recognise that the current level of suicide and self-harm is too high. With this in mind, the Government is taking unprecedented action, including:</p><ul><li>investing in over 4,700 additional staff since October 2015;</li><li>introducing new suicide and self-harm prevention training, which has already reached over 24,000 staff;</li><li>improving support for prisoners in their early days and weeks and rolling out a ‘key worker’ scheme which ensures each prisoner has dedicated support from a particular prison officer;</li><li>funding the Samaritans to provide their valuable Listeners Scheme for a further three years; and</li><li>improving the ACCT case management process for those identified as at risk of self-harm or suicide.</li></ul><p> </p><p>We are also committed to taking action to improve prisoners’ health. Since April 2018, a new National Partnership Agreement has been in place, marking an even stronger level of co-operation and cohesiveness between agencies that influence the policy, commissioning and delivery of prison health services. The agreement sets out how the partnership (DHSC, NHS England, MoJ, HMPPS and Public Health England) will work together to deliver its three core objectives. It agrees ten key priority areas for 2018-2021, including reducing incidents of self-harm and self-inflicted deaths in the adult secure estate.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, NHS England has published a new Service Specification for Integrated Substance Misuse Treatment Services in Prisons in England, which brings greater focus to the treatment of users of psychoactive substances and makes stronger links to mental health.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 21/05/2019 16:11:36 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1126889

registered interest
date	15/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Consultants
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 25 March 2019 to Question 231973 on HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Consultants, for what reason the figure for the total spend by the HM Courts and Tribunals Service on consultancy in 2016-17 provided in that Answer differs from the total figure for that expenditure published on page 47 of the HM Courts & Tribunals Service Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17.
tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
uin	254791
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>The previous parliamentary question 231973 asked for total spend on consultancy in 2016-17, so the figures provided were extracted from the Bravo contract system which reports all spend that has been invoiced during the reporting period.</p><p> </p><p>HM Courts &amp; Tribunals Service Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17 are prepared on an accruals basis - this is when the cost is recognised within the relevant period in which the department derives the benefit of the services acquired or consume the goods purchased, regardless of when invoices are received or payment was made – and is the reason why the Answer to Question 231973 differs.</p><p> </p><p>The Annual Report &amp; Accounts are prepared in accordance with accounting standards and are subject to audit.</p><p> </p><p>By making use of consultants, the department can save on salary, national insurance and pension costs associated with permanently employing individuals whose skills may not be needed after a set period.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 20/05/2019 16:09:42 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1126970

registered interest
date	15/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Trials: Ethnic Groups
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of (a) BAME and (b) white defendants who enter guilty pleas.
tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
uin	254792
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/05/2019 answer text <p>The proportion of guilty pleas (where plea was known) has slowly been declining, from 74% in 2014 to 69% for white defendants, and from 61% in 2014 to 57% for BAME defendants in 2018.</p><p>Data is only available for defendants dealt with at Crown Court (not all defendants) for indictable offences.</p><p>The proportion of defendants who entered a guilty plea by ethnicity (2008 – 2018) can be found in the Crown court data tool at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802313/crown-court-tool-2018.xlsx" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802313/crown-court-tool-2018.xlsx</a></p><ul><li>Remove the ‘Values’ field from Rows</li><li>Drag the ‘Ethnicity’ field into Rows</li><li>Drag the ‘Total for Trial’ field into Values</li><li>Filter to ’01: Guilty Plea’ in the ‘Plea at Crown Court’ field for the number of defendants that entered a guilty plea</li><li>Filter to ’01: Guilty Plea’ and ’02: Not Guilty plea’ in the ‘Plea at Crown Court’ field number of defendants that entered a plea overall (where plea was known)</li><li>The number of BAME defendants can be defined by combining ’02: Black’, ’03: Asian’, ’04: Mixed’ and ’05: Chinese and other’ rows. The number of white defendants who entered a guilty plea each year can be found in the ‘01: White’ row.</li><li>The proportion of defendants who entered a guilty plea can be found by dividing the number of guilty pleas by the number of overall pleas for the relevant ethnicity rows.</li></ul> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 22/05/2019 16:46:56 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1126464

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Joseph McCann
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on what date did his officials inform him that Joseph McCann had been released in error.
tabling member constituency	Leeds East
tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
uin	254233
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>Joseph McCann has now been charged with a number of serious sexual offences committed on or after 21 April 2019. At the time he was being supervised by the National Probation Service (NPS) on licence, as part of the sentence of imprisonment for public protection which he had received In 2008. The NPS will now review how Mr McCann was managed in the community, in accordance with the Probation Serious Further Offence (SFO) Review Procedures, in order to identify whether there were any deficiencies in practice which must be addressed by means of a formal action plan.</p><p> </p><p>We are looking into the circumstances surrounding his release.He was released on 15 February 2019, in accordance with the sentence of the Court on 25 January 2018, having served half the three-year determinate sentence for burglary which the Court imposed, less time he had already spent on remand.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 21/05/2019 16:16:11 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1126481

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the appointment of Vera Baird as Victims' Commissioner, (a) what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of holding a by-election for a new Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner; and (b) whether an assessment was made of that cost as part of that appointment process.
tabling member constituency	Oxford West and Abingdon
tabling member printed	Layla Moran
uin	254270
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>The role of the Victims’ Commissioner is greatly valued across the justice system and the Government welcomes the recent appointment of Dame Vera Baird QC to the role.</p><p> </p><p>Dame Vera’s appointment was made in line with the Governance Code for Public Appointments which prescribes that all public appointments should be governed by the principle of appointment on merit. An assessment of the costs of a by-election was not factored into the appointment process.</p><p> </p><p><em>A Police and Crime Commissioner by-election will be run by a statutorily independent Returning Officer and will be funded out of the </em><em>Consolidated Fund</em><em>. </em></p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 20/05/2019 15:23:57 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4656 label Biography information for Layla Moran

1126553

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offences against Children: Trials
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on victims of historical child sexual abuse of providing them with an alternative to court proceedings involving a jury trial.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	254206
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>Tackling historical sexual abuse and bringing perpetrators to justice is a government priority. It is vital that victims are provided with support to cope and recover from the impact of crime, regardless of whether they choose to report the crime to the police.</p><p> </p><p>The right of defendants in Crown Court cases to be tried by their peers is a fundamental part of our justice system and the government has no plans to interfere with it.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 20/05/2019 13:30:12 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126554

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offences against Children: Trials
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether advice and training is in place for jury members deciding on cases of historical childhood sexual abuse; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	254207
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>Juries are randomly selected, independent and make decisions purely on the basis of the facts presented to them by the prosecution and defence. Jury members receive no advice or training prior to being called to serve on any case. However, they are guided and supported by the trial judge who advises them on the relevant points of law and reminds them of their role.</p><p>Judges hearing serious sex offence cases are required to have specialist training and specific instructions on how to direct the jury in sexual offence cases are available.</p><p> </p><p>There is guidance provided to judges in the Crown Court Compendium (a publicly available document) as to what directions may be given to juries in appropriate circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>https://www.judiciary.uk/publications/crown-court-compendium-published-december-2018/</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 20/05/2019 16:06:12 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126558

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Ministry of Justice: Sick Leave
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of officials in his Department took sick leave for reasons relating to stress in the last 12 months; what proportion that leave was of total sick leave taken in his Department; and what the cost was to his Department of officials taking sick leave over that period.
tabling member constituency	Carshalton and Wallington
tabling member printed	Tom Brake
uin	254067
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/05/2019 answer text <p>The total number of staff<strong><em><sup>1</sup></em></strong> working days lost due to sickness<sup>2</sup>, and more specifically stress, between April 2018 and March 2019 is as follows</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>Total Number of staff</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Working Days Lost</strong><strong><sup>3</sup></strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total Staff (FTE) - average over 12 months</strong></p></td><td><p>69,783</p></td><td><p>N/A.</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>All Sickness (Headcount)</strong></p></td><td><p>38,989</p></td><td><p>600,051</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Of which Stress (Headcount)</strong></p></td><td><p>2,764</p></td><td><p>83,918</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Stress as % of total staff</strong></p></td><td><p>4%</p></td><td><p>N/A.</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Stress as % of all sickness</strong></p></td><td><p>7%</p></td><td><p>14%</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><em>Notes</em></p><p><strong><em><sup>1 </sup></em></strong><em>This analysis covers MoJ and the Executive Agencies (including HMPPS and HMCTS).</em></p><p><strong><em><sup>2 </sup></em></strong><em>Absences are categorised according to International Classification of Diseases, which is an approach used across the civil service.</em></p><p><strong><em><sup>3</sup></em></strong><em>The cost to the Department is reflected in the total number of working days lost.</em></p><p> </p><p>The MoJ is committed to supporting the health and wellbeing of all its employees, and to reducing sickness absence levels including those which are stress-related. Staff can seek advice and support from our comprehensive occupational health service and employee assistance programme which offers 24/7 help.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 22/05/2019 16:38:48 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	151 label Biography information for Tom Brake