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1179185

	registered interest
	date	21/02/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Marriage: Humanism
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the financial effect on couples wishing to have a humanist wedding of the requirement to also have a civil ceremony in order for their marriage to be lawfully recognised.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	18961
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/03/2020 answer text <p>Government consulted in 2014 on marriages by non-religious belief organisations. Its summary assessment of costs and benefits was published in the response, which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/marriages-by-non-religious-belief-organisations.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 02/03/2020 15:32:31 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1283643

	registered interest
	date	03/02/2021
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Weddings: Coronavirus
	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 (a) extend existing notices of intention to marry and (b) waive the fee for a further notice of intention to marry for couples whose wedding ceremonies have been cancelled due to covid-19 restrictions.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	148870
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government acknowledges the significant upheaval that Covid-19 is causing for couples who were looking to marry at this time.</p><p> </p><p>The requirement to solemnize a marriage within twelve months of giving notice to marry is set out in primary legislation, which does not provide for extending this period. It would require primary legislation to change this. The Law Commission is currently undertaking a broader review of the law on marriage ceremonies. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is also considering whether a revised scheme should allow rules to adapt to the situation of a national emergency. While that work cannot provide solutions for the current pandemic it could lead to a reformed and more resilient scheme for weddings in future.</p><p> </p><p>The notice fee is usually £35 per person and is paid to local authorities for the service they provide in the taking of the notice and entering it into the notice book. Local authorities are able to waive, reduce or refund fees on compassionate grounds or in cases of hardship. It is for each local authority to determine depending on the individual circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 08/02/2021 15:02:14 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1287142

	registered interest
	date	19/02/2021
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Judiciary: Retirement
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to respond to the consultation on the mandatory retirement age for judicial office holders which closed on 16 October 2020.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	155299
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2021 answer text <p>The Government’s consultation on proposals to increase the mandatory retirement age for judicial office holders received over 1000 responses from the magistracy, the judiciary and their associated bodies, as well as stakeholders from the legal profession.</p><p>We are currently finalising the consultation response and will publish this shortly, with a view to legislate for any changes we decide to make at the earliest opportunity.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 24/02/2021 17:21:46 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1309876

	registered interest
	date	16/04/2021
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Prisons: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether temporary cells were installed in women's prisons since April 2020 as part of the government's plans to limit the spread of covid-19 in prisons.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	182088
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/04/2021 answer text <p>We expanded the prison estate by introducing temporary accommodation cells to increase space and help reduce the spread of coronavirus. A total of 112 temporary accommodation cells have been installed in the women’s estate at HMP &amp; YOI Drake Hall, HMP &amp; YOI East Sutton Park, HMP Foston Hall and HMP &amp; YOI Askham Grange. This accommodation is part of the quick and decisive action we have taken to limit the spread of the virus across all prison establishments including restricting regimes, minimising inter-prison transfers and compartmentalising our prisons into different units to isolate the sick, shield the vulnerable and quarantine new arrivals.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 21/04/2021 16:34:40 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1311027

	registered interest
	date	21/04/2021
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Prison Accommodation: Females
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many temporary accommodation cells were installed in the women's prison estate since April 2020 as part of the Government's plans to limit the spread of covid-19 in prisons.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	185455
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2021 answer text <p>A total of 112 temporary accommodation cells have been installed in the women’s estate at HMP &amp; YOI Drake Hall, HMP &amp; YOI East Sutton Park, HMP Foston Hall and HMP &amp; YOI Askham Grange to limit the spread of covid-19 in the women’s prison estate.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 26/04/2021 14:30:24 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1173816

	registered interest
	date	28/01/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Asylum: Appeals
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average duration of appeal proceedings on first instance decisions on asylum applications was in the last twelve months for which data is available.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	9114
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2020 answer text <p>The average clearance time, from receipt to disposal, of an asylum appeal in the First-tier Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber, over the last 12 months for which data are available</p><p>(1 October 2018 to 30 September 2019), was:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>All nationalities</p></td><td><p>29 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Syrian nationals</p></td><td><p>34 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Afghan nationals</p></td><td><p>31 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Iraqi nationals</p></td><td><p>20 weeks</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>These figures are from internal management information extracted from the tribunal’s case management system. They do not form part of the published statistics.</p><p>Tribunal statistics are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics</p><p> </p><p>HM Courts &amp; Tribunals Service has worked extensively to reduce the outstanding caseload and improve timeliness in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber. This has seen the live caseload in the First-tier Tribunal reduce by more than two-thirds, from 64,800 to 20,300 between July 2016 and September 2019. The average duration across all case types has also improved from 52 weeks in the period July to September 2017 to 34 weeks in the period July to September 2019.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 9115 question first answered 04/02/2020 10:59:16 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1173817

	registered interest
	date	28/01/2020
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Asylum: Middle East
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average duration of appeal proceedings was against first instance decisions on asylum applications for (a) Syrian, (b) Afghan and (c) Iraqi in the last 12 months for which data is available.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	9115
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2020 answer text <p>The average clearance time, from receipt to disposal, of an asylum appeal in the First-tier Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber, over the last 12 months for which data are available</p><p>(1 October 2018 to 30 September 2019), was:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>All nationalities</p></td><td><p>29 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Syrian nationals</p></td><td><p>34 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Afghan nationals</p></td><td><p>31 weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Iraqi nationals</p></td><td><p>20 weeks</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>These figures are from internal management information extracted from the tribunal’s case management system. They do not form part of the published statistics.</p><p>Tribunal statistics are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics</p><p> </p><p>HM Courts &amp; Tribunals Service has worked extensively to reduce the outstanding caseload and improve timeliness in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber. This has seen the live caseload in the First-tier Tribunal reduce by more than two-thirds, from 64,800 to 20,300 between July 2016 and September 2019. The average duration across all case types has also improved from 52 weeks in the period July to September 2017 to 34 weeks in the period July to September 2019.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 9114 question first answered 04/02/2020 10:59:16 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1354493

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2021
	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	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to tackle the backlog of cases in the family courts.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	47037
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2021 answer text <p>The protection of children, particularly those who are most vulnerable, is a priority for this government and this has never been more important than during this period. The family courts were quick to respond to the pandemic and I am extremely grateful for the dedication of family justice professionals at this unprecedented time.</p><p> </p><p>In March, we launched the £1 million Family Mediation Voucher Scheme, to encourage and support separating parents to explore mediation before coming to court. We want to ensure that every parent coming to court is able to resolve their case in the most effective way, including through mediation where safe and appropriate. Last month, we invested a further £800,000 into the scheme, which is expected to help around 2000 more families.</p><p> </p><p>We continue to focus on bringing down the outstanding caseload by investing in more judicial sitting days and increasing the overall level of disposals. Cases with the most significant safeguarding issues remain our priority, and where suitable, cases are being heard remotely to continue maximising our use of our estate.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 15/09/2021 16:15:14 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1354494

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2021
	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	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to help ensure that accurate information is provided to the family courts by the criminal courts when allegations of abuse or criminal convictions are made in family court proceedings.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	47038
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2021 answer text <p>The ‘2013 Protocol and Good Practice Model’ for disclosure of information in cases of alleged child abuse provides for the local authority to notify the police on issue of family court proceedings, if not before. This notification serves as a request for disclosure to the police.</p><p> </p><p>In April 2021, amendments were made to rules 3.3 and 3.5 of the Criminal Procedure Rules. These changes imposed a duty on parties to criminal proceedings to alert the criminal court to any related family proceedings and encourage the exchange of relevant information with a court dealing with those proceedings. Information about criminal proceedings may be obtained from criminal courts under Part 5 of the Criminal Procedure Rules by those who are parties to the criminal proceedings and by members of the public generally.</p><p> </p><p>The Government regularly considers how the join up between the criminal and family jurisdictions can be improved. In 2022, we aim to pilot a new “one family, one judge” approach to hearing cases where the same judge will hear the criminal and family court proceedings.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 15/09/2021 16:16:02 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous

1354495

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2021
	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	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to help ensure the prompt rectification of errors that are identified in reports submitted in family court proceedings.
	tabling member constituency	Enfield, Southgate
	tabling member printed	Bambos Charalambous
	uin	47039
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2021 answer text <p>The manner in which errors or alleged errors contained within a report submitted in family court proceedings are rectified is a matter for the court to decide, however in all cases the court will seek for such errors to be dealt with promptly and without undue delay.</p><p> </p><p>Under the Family Procedure Rules 2010 (FPR) Part 1 “the overriding objective” requires the court to deal with cases expeditiously and fairly and for the parties to assist the court in this objective. This general obligation could require the court, or the parties, to act to ensure any issues with a report are rectified.</p><p> </p><p>Depending on the nature of the error contained within a report, if the court considers that the error needs to be rectified in the written report, the court could use its general case management powers (FPR rule 4.1) to direct that an amended or addendum report be submitted to the court.</p><p> </p><p>Where it is alleged by one or more of the parties that a report contains errors, the accuracy and veracity of the information included within the report can be tested during the court hearing, in order for the court to make a determination on this issue.</p><p> </p><p>Proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth. (FPR, rule 17.6)</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 15/09/2021 16:18:28 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
	tabling member	4610 label Biography information for Bambos Charalambous