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1012534

	registered interest
	date	22/11/2018
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Hate Crime: Prosecutions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 6 December 2017 (HL Deb, col 1051), whether Baroness Vere of Norbiton wrote to the Director of Public Prosecutions to ask whether she agrees that the definition of hate crime is broader than what is in statute and on what authority any broadening was based; and if so, what reply she received.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL11726
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/12/2018 answer text <p>Baroness Vere of Norbiton wrote to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on 13 December 2017. The DPP provided her response on 9 January 2018.</p><p> </p><p>In her response, the then DPP confirmed that the flagging definition for hate crime was agreed between the CPS and the NPCC (ACPO as it was then) in 2007 and that it is wider than the definition set out in legislation to ensure all relevant cases are captured.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS adopted the recommended definition in the Macpherson report published in 1999 as a result of the inquiry into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. The Macpherson report also recommended that ‘this definition should be universally adopted by the Police, local Government and other relevant agencies’.</p><p> </p><p>The recommendations of the Macpherson report were welcomed by the Government at the time and the current Government remains in support of this position. The CPS has worked with police to implement the recommended definition across all strands of hate crime. The CPS takes tackling hate crime seriously and recognises the need to increase public confidence to report. The flagging definition is important in achieving this aim.</p><p> </p><p>In order for a crime to be charged and prosecuted as a hate crime, the CPS uses the legal definitions contained in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA 1998) and the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003). This means that not every incident that the victim or another person has perceived to be a hate crime will actually be a hate crime in law.</p><p> </p><p>In her letter, the then DPP also confirmed that the CPS legal guidance recognises the potential impact of prosecutions on Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to freedom of expression). The CPS must balance the rights of an individual to freedom of speech against the duty of the state to act proportionately and to protect the rights of others.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 04/12/2018 13:13:56 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

1169304

	registered interest
	date	07/01/2020
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Offences against Children
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many council officials have been (1) charged with, (2) convicted for, and (3) are awaiting trial for, dereliction of duty for failure to support victims of grooming gangs since 1997.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL160
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2020 answer text <p>Tackling the sexual exploitation of children remains a top priority for the CPS. Specialist CPS lawyers work closely with police investigators to build strong cases, resulting in many successful prosecutions of complex grooming cases for example in Rochdale, Rotherham, Oxford and Newcastle.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS does not maintain a central record of defendants’ occupations, nor of the specific circumstances under which a person has been charged with an offence. This information could only be obtained by an examination of CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. The CPS collects data to assist the management of its prosecution functions. The CPS does not collect data that constitutes official statistics as defined in the Statistics and Registration Act 2007.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 20/01/2020 15:52:29 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

1234953

	registered interest
	date	16/09/2020
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Offences against Children
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how much compensation has been paid by the Crown Prosecution Service to victims of group-based child sexual exploitation due to a failure to prosecute their attackers in each of the last five years; and how many such cases there have been.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL8202
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/09/2020 answer text <p>There have been no cases where compensation has been paid by the Crown Prosecution Service to victims of group-based child sexual exploitation due to a failure to prosecute their attackers in the last five years.</p> answering member printed Baroness Scott of Bybrook question first answered 29/09/2020 15:13:00 answering member 4553 label Biography information for Baroness Scott of Bybrook
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

1489798

	registered interest
	date	15/07/2022
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Offences against Children: Rotherham and Telford
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that prosecutions are brought against (1) the members of the child sexual exploitation gangs in Rotherham and Telford, and (2) the responsible authorities that failed to prevent the abuse from taking place.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL1810
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2022 answer text <p>Following the Alexis Jay report in 2014 and identification of the problems that existed in responding to investigations of Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) gangs in Rotherham, the National Crime Agency (NCA) launched Operation Stovewood, a dedicated team investigating similar offending which had occurred within Rotherham. As outlined in the Telford Inquiry report, a number of other forces across the country have successfully investigated similar offending in their force areas.</p><p> </p><p>The CPS has a national response to these types of investigations. Each area has formerly dealt with large CSE cases within their Rape and Serious Sexual Offence (RASSO) units. Since its inception, Operation Stovewood has been handled by a team of lawyers within the former Organised Crime Division. On 1 April 2022, the CPS created a new unit in direct response to the number and scale of these investigations being undertaken across England and Wales. The Organised Child Sexual Abuse Unit (OCSAU) is a dedicated team of lawyers, which in addition to the casework generated by NCA Op Stovewood and Child Exploitation and Online Protection teams, will undertake all similar casework generated by police forces nationwide.</p><p> </p><p>The unit currently has casework involving approximately 255 suspects and defendants. The lawyers within the unit work closely with investigators from the earliest stage of the commencement of investigations to ensure that the strongest possible cases can be built, so that those committing these offences are prosecuted. Where the CPS’s legal test is met, they will always prosecute these offenders for the offences they have committed.</p> answering member printed Lord Stewart of Dirleton question first answered 01/08/2022 11:42:51 answering member 4899 label Biography information for Lord Stewart of Dirleton
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

709818

	registered interest
	date	09/03/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Offences against Children
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make public the identity of the witness known as Nick, and invite the Crown Prosecution Service to consider his prosecution for wasting police time in the case of Lord Brittan of Spennithorne, and other well-known figures.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL5952
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/03/2017 answer text <p>Parliament has granted anonymity for complainants in sexual offences cases.</p><p>The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) acts independently of government under the superintendence of the Attorney General. If the police refer a case to the CPS to make a charging decision it will be considered in accordance with the two stage test set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. Prosecutors consider whether there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction and, if so, whether a prosecution is needed in the public interest.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 21/03/2017 15:22:28 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

709820

	registered interest
	date	09/03/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Forced Marriage: Trials
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made by the Attorney General in his review of the alleged mishandling by the Crown Prosecution Service of forced marriage trials.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL5954
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2017 answer text <p>The UK Government is committed to tackling the brutal practice of forced marriage. The Attorney General has spoken with the Director of Public Prosecutions about the Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS) long term strategy to increase the number of prosecutions for ‘honour based’ violence.</p><p>The CPS is committed to improving its response to these crimes. It has implemented an action plan relating to ‘honour-based’ violence and forced marriage which will be taken forward by the CPS Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy Team, working in close partnership with the police and third sector experts. Further to the action plan, a joint protocol was published in December 2016 outlining the CPS and police commitment to the successful investigation and prosecution of these crimes. The protocol enables police and prosecutors to quickly understand the action they must take when a crime is reported to the police and referred to the CPS for a charging decision, ensuring the safety of the victim is at the heart of the process.</p><p>The Attorney General will be updated on the implementation of the action plan and joint protocol at regular intervals.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 23/03/2017 11:51:58 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

803038

	registered interest
	date	08/12/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Religious Hatred: Prosecutions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton (HL Deb, col 1052) on 6 December, whether the Crown Prosecution Service’s definition of hate crime includes any action or speech which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by prejudice based on a person’s religion; and where such action or speech leads to a successful prosecution, what is the maximum sentence.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL4003
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/12/2017 answer text <p>The shared CPS and NPCC flagging definition of a religiously motivated hate crime covers any incident or crime which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a person’s religion or perceived religion. In order for a crime to be charged and prosecuted as a hate crime, the CPS uses the legal definitions contained in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA 1998) and the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003).</p><p>The CDA 1998 creates a number of specific racially or religiously aggravated offences, each of which has a higher maximum sentence than the ‘basic’ non-racially or religiously aggravated version of the offence. For other offences, the CJA 2003 places a duty on the courts to increase the sentence where the defendant has been convicted of an offence where they have demonstrated or been motivated by hostility towards the victim based upon their protected characteristic. The CDA 2003 does not set a maximum sentence. Sentencing is a matter for the courts and will depend on the individual circumstances of the case and the legislation under which the defendant has been convicted.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 19/12/2017 15:26:34 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

803039

	registered interest
	date	08/12/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Religious Hatred: Prosecutions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton (HL Deb, col 1052) on 6 December, whether the Crown Prosecution Service’s definition of hate crime covers cases in which a Christian says that Jesus is the only Son of the one true God if this offends anyone of any other religion.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL4004
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/12/2017 answer text <p>The CPS assesses each case on its individual facts and circumstances. Prosecutions can only be brought in line with legislation and in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors. For something to be considered a hate crime, the perpetrator must have first committed a crime in accordance with the relevant legislation.</p><p>The CPS legal guidance on hate crime recognises the right to freedom of expression set out in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The CPS seeks to balance the right to freedom of speech and expression against the duty of the state to act proportionately.</p><p>In relation to offences of stirring up religious hatred, there is a freedom of expression defence contained in Section 29J of the Public Order Act 1986, which explicitly states nothing in the Act; &quot;...prohibits or restricts discussion, criticism or expressions of antipathy, dislike, ridicule, insult, or abuse of particular religions, or the beliefs or practices of its adherents.&quot;</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 19/12/2017 15:27:51 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

810452

	registered interest
	date	21/12/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Hate Crime: Prosecutions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 6 December (HL Deb, col 1050), whether the definition of hate crime adopted by the Crown Prosecution Service to facilitate the reporting of incidents is wider than the legal definition of such crime under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and the Criminal Justice Act 2003; if so, how; and upon what authority it was issued.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL4420
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/01/2018 answer text <p>The flagging definition for hate crime was agreed between the CPS and the NPCC (ACPO as it was then) in 2007. It is wider than the definition set out in legislation to ensure that all relevant cases are captured.</p><p>The flagging definition comes from the recommended definition in the Macpherson report published in 1999 as a result of the inquiry into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. The Macpherson report recommended that ‘this definition should be universally adopted by the Police, local Government and other relevant agencies’.</p><p>This recommendation in the Macpherson report was welcomed by the Government at the time and the current Government remains in support of this position. The CPS has worked with police to implement the recommended definition across all strands of hate crime. The CPS takes tackling hate crime seriously and recognises the need to increase public confidence to report. The flagging definition is important in achieving this aim.</p><p>In order for a crime to be charged and prosecuted as a hate crime, the CPS uses the legal definitions contained in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA 1998) and the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003). This means that not every incident that the victim or another person has perceived to be a hate crime will actually be a hate crime in law.</p><p>The CPS legal guidance recognises the potential impact of prosecutions on Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to freedom of expression). The CPS must balance the rights of an individual to freedom of speech against the duty of the state to act proportionately and to protect the rights of others.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 09/01/2018 17:09:20 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch

810453

	registered interest
	date	21/12/2017
	answering body	Attorney General
	answering dept id	88
	answering dept short name	Attorney General
	answering dept sort name	Attorney General
	hansard heading	Hate Crime: Prosecutions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 6 December (HL Deb, col 1051), whether the Baroness Vere of Norbiton has written to the Director of Public Prosecutions as indicated; and if so, what response has been received.
	tabling member printed	Lord Pearson of Rannoch
	uin	HL4421
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/01/2018 answer text <p>Baroness Vere of Norbiton wrote to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on 13 December 2017. The DPP provided her response on 9 January 2018.</p><p>In her response, the DPP confirmed that the flagging definition for hate crime was agreed between the CPS and the NPCC (ACPO as it was then) in 2007 and that it is wider than the definition set out in legislation to ensure all relevant cases are captured.</p><p>The CPS adopted the recommended definition in the Macpherson report published in 1999 as a result of the inquiry into the murder of Stephen Lawrence. The Macpherson report also recommended that ‘this definition should be universally adopted by the Police, local Government and other relevant agencies’.</p><p>This recommendation in the Macpherson report was welcomed by the Government at the time and the current Government remains in support of this position. The CPS has worked with police to implement the recommended definition across all strands of hate crime. The CPS takes tackling hate crime seriously and recognises the need to increase public confidence to report. The flagging definition is important in achieving this aim.</p><p>In order for a crime to be charged and prosecuted as a hate crime, the CPS uses the legal definitions contained in the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA 1998) and the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (CJA 2003). This means that not every incident that the victim or another person has perceived to be a hate crime will actually be a hate crime in law.</p><p>In her letter, the DPP also confirmed that the CPS legal guidance recognises the potential impact of prosecutions on Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the right to freedom of expression). The CPS must balance the rights of an individual to freedom of speech against the duty of the state to act proportionately and to protect the rights of others.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 09/01/2018 17:10:42 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3153 label Biography information for Lord Pearson of Rannoch