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1216980

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Trials
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 effect on (a) victims, (b) witnesses and (c) defendants of replacing jury trials with trials by a judge and two magistrates.
tabling member constituency	Stretford and Urmston
tabling member printed	Kate Green
uin	63337
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2020 answer text <p>We are pursuing a number of measures to help our Criminal Courts’ recovery, including searching for new court capacity. It is right that we think ambitiously and consider a full range of options. The Ministry would carry out a detailed assessment of any measure before introducing legislation.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 01/07/2020 14:51:22 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4120 label Biography information for Kate Green

1217035

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Voluntary Organisations: Procurement
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 support local specialist BAME voluntary and community organisations in accessing funding for resettlement and rehabilitation work through (a) the HMPPS dynamic framework and (b) alternative procurement routes.
tabling member constituency	West Ham
tabling member printed	Ms Lyn Brown
uin	63273
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>As the Lord Chancellor set out in his statement to the House on 11 June, we want to see greater involvement by voluntary and specialist organisations in rehabilitation services, including by specialist BAME organisations. The Probation Services Dynamic Framework will allow the National Probation Service to directly commission rehabilitative services in a way that encourages the participation of a range of suppliers including voluntary and community organisations.</p><p>We are working with Clinks, the umbrella group for third sector organisations in criminal justice, to encourage the participation of BAME community organisations in the Dynamic Framework, including advice on forming bidding consortia.</p><p>We intend to assess the proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering Dynamic Framework services on an annual basis as part of the Probation Reform Programme’s benefits management strategy.</p><p>When using alternative procurement routes to the Dynamic Framework, the National Probation Service will have the same guidance on commissioning, including on reducing barriers to entry, and services procured will be subject to the same assessment for proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering services.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 63274 63275 question first answered 29/06/2020 16:33:16 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	1583 label Biography information for Ms Lyn Brown

1217037

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Voluntary Organisations: Procurement
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether local specialist BAME voluntary and community organisations will be able to make joint bids for funding for resettlement and rehabilitation work through (a) the HMPPS dynamic framework and (b) alternative procurement routes.
tabling member constituency	West Ham
tabling member printed	Ms Lyn Brown
uin	63274
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>As the Lord Chancellor set out in his statement to the House on 11 June, we want to see greater involvement by voluntary and specialist organisations in rehabilitation services, including by specialist BAME organisations. The Probation Services Dynamic Framework will allow the National Probation Service to directly commission rehabilitative services in a way that encourages the participation of a range of suppliers including voluntary and community organisations.</p><p>We are working with Clinks, the umbrella group for third sector organisations in criminal justice, to encourage the participation of BAME community organisations in the Dynamic Framework, including advice on forming bidding consortia.</p><p>We intend to assess the proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering Dynamic Framework services on an annual basis as part of the Probation Reform Programme’s benefits management strategy.</p><p>When using alternative procurement routes to the Dynamic Framework, the National Probation Service will have the same guidance on commissioning, including on reducing barriers to entry, and services procured will be subject to the same assessment for proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering services.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 63273 63275 question first answered 29/06/2020 16:33:16 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	1583 label Biography information for Ms Lyn Brown

1217039

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Voluntary Organisations: Procurement
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how he plans to measure the extent of involvement of (a) voluntary and community organisations, (b) BAME voluntary and community organisations, (c) voluntary and community organisations serving areas smaller than PCC level but larger than local authority level, (d) voluntary and community organisations serving local authority-sized areas and (e) voluntary and community organisations serving sub-local authority-sized areas in (i) the HMPPS dynamic framework and (ii) alternative procurement routes under the planned new procurement model from June 2021.
tabling member constituency	West Ham
tabling member printed	Ms Lyn Brown
uin	63275
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>As the Lord Chancellor set out in his statement to the House on 11 June, we want to see greater involvement by voluntary and specialist organisations in rehabilitation services, including by specialist BAME organisations. The Probation Services Dynamic Framework will allow the National Probation Service to directly commission rehabilitative services in a way that encourages the participation of a range of suppliers including voluntary and community organisations.</p><p>We are working with Clinks, the umbrella group for third sector organisations in criminal justice, to encourage the participation of BAME community organisations in the Dynamic Framework, including advice on forming bidding consortia.</p><p>We intend to assess the proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering Dynamic Framework services on an annual basis as part of the Probation Reform Programme’s benefits management strategy.</p><p>When using alternative procurement routes to the Dynamic Framework, the National Probation Service will have the same guidance on commissioning, including on reducing barriers to entry, and services procured will be subject to the same assessment for proportion of voluntary and community organisations delivering services.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 63273 63274 question first answered 29/06/2020 16:33:16 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	1583 label Biography information for Ms Lyn Brown

1217084

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons and Judiciary: Sexual Offences
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) prison wardens, (b) probation officers, (c) prison governors, (d) judges and (e) magistrates have been dismissed for sexual harassment in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Kingston and Surbiton
tabling member printed	Sir Edward Davey
uin	63204
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/06/2020 answer text <p>The number of dismissals for the roles requested in each of the last five years is as follows:</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>2014/15 </strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015/16</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016/17</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017/18</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018/19</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Band 3-5 Prison Officers</p></td><td><p>3</p></td><td><p>3</p></td><td><p>4</p></td><td><p>4</p></td><td><p>4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Probation Officers</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Prison Governors</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Judges</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Magistrates</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br>MoJ treats allegations of sexual harassment seriously and has policies in place to ensure that they are fully investigated and appropriate action is taken.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer question first answered 29/06/2020 16:29:00 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	188 label Biography information for Ed Davey

1216030

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Legal Ombudsman
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how his Department ensures that the office of the Legal Ombudsman does not discriminate against people suffering from mental health issues during the decision making process.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	62649
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>The Office for Legal Complaints (OLC) is an arm’s length body – which administers the Legal Ombudsman scheme (LeO) – and makes decisions in relation to cases considered under the scheme independently of, and without influence from, the Ministry of Justice.</p><p>We are aware that LeO staff receive training on reasonable adjustments and have Dedicated Vulnerable Customers Champions to identify customers who may need additional assistance or reasonable adjustments to access its service. This includes adjustments for mental health reasons.</p><p>The OLC also has a service complaints process, of which the last stage is escalation to the Service Complaint Adjudicator who is appointed by the Board and independent of the OLC.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 25/06/2020 16:45:59 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1216092

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Legal Profession: Disclosure of Information
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the prevalence of use of non-disclosure agreements by legal professionals; and what steps his department is taking to help ensure that non-disclosure agreements are not misused.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Zarah Sultana
uin	62650
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>The legal profession in England and Wales is independent of Government and legal professionals are regulated by a number of regulators including the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) and the Bar Standards Board (BSB). Legal professionals must comply with a detailed Code of Conduct, which ensures that high standards of conduct are met.</p><p>The SRA has issued guidance via a warning notice to all regulated individuals and entities on the use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). The SRA warning notice confirms that they consider NDAs to be improperly used if they prevent a person from reporting misconduct, making a protected disclosure, reporting an offence or cooperating with criminal activity. The SRA has also been taking enforcement action against solicitors over the misuse of NDAs.</p><p>The Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy has published its response to views on consultation on confidentiality clauses. This proposes new legislation to further protect consumers in the provision of such legal services and deter rogue practice.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 25/06/2020 16:48:25 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4786 label Biography information for Zarah Sultana

1216223

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Social Entitlement Chamber: Video Conferencing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to provide the option of hearings by video link for all appeal hearings in the Social Entitlement Chamber (First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support)).
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	62390
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>HM Courts &amp; Tribunals Service is working hard to keep our justice system functioning during this unprecedented public health emergency. We are focusing on priority cases, changing working practices and introducing new procedures to minimise risks to the judiciary, staff and all those who use our courts and tribunals.</p><p>In line with government guidance, face to face hearings in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) have been replaced with telephone hearings and the use of other remote hearing technology to facilitate as many hearings as possible being held remotely. All parties to the hearings are being contacted directly to confirm new hearing arrangements.<strong> <br></strong></p><p>After a number of successful tests, arrangements are currently being made to introduce and make available Cloud Video Platform (CVP) hearings in all SSCS Tribunal regions. The decision as to how a hearing is conducted is a matter for the judge who will determine how best to uphold the interests of justice. In considering the suitability of video/audio, judges will consider issues such as the benefit type under appeal, the nature of the matters at stake during the hearing and any issues the use of video/audio technology may present for participants in the hearing.</p><p>The latest period for which official statistics about SSCS appeals are available is up to March 2020. Up until that time no SSCS hearings had taken place by video link due to Covid-19.</p><p>www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 62391 question first answered 25/06/2020 15:10:07 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

1216225

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Social Entitlement Chamber: Video Conferencing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many appeals in the Social Entitlement Chamber (First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support)) have been heard by video link during the Covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Edinburgh South
tabling member printed	Ian Murray
uin	62391
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>HM Courts &amp; Tribunals Service is working hard to keep our justice system functioning during this unprecedented public health emergency. We are focusing on priority cases, changing working practices and introducing new procedures to minimise risks to the judiciary, staff and all those who use our courts and tribunals.</p><p>In line with government guidance, face to face hearings in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) have been replaced with telephone hearings and the use of other remote hearing technology to facilitate as many hearings as possible being held remotely. All parties to the hearings are being contacted directly to confirm new hearing arrangements.<strong> <br></strong></p><p>After a number of successful tests, arrangements are currently being made to introduce and make available Cloud Video Platform (CVP) hearings in all SSCS Tribunal regions. The decision as to how a hearing is conducted is a matter for the judge who will determine how best to uphold the interests of justice. In considering the suitability of video/audio, judges will consider issues such as the benefit type under appeal, the nature of the matters at stake during the hearing and any issues the use of video/audio technology may present for participants in the hearing.</p><p>The latest period for which official statistics about SSCS appeals are available is up to March 2020. Up until that time no SSCS hearings had taken place by video link due to Covid-19.</p><p>www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 62390 question first answered 25/06/2020 15:10:07 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	3966 label Biography information for Ian Murray

1216254

registered interest
date	22/06/2020
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Companies
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 potential merits of amending the Standard Monthly Payments received by legal aid firms to support those firms during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull East
tabling member printed	Karl Turner
uin	62409
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2020 answer text <p>Firms can elect to be paid by either Standard or Variable Monthly Payments, according to which model may be most advantageous to them. The MoJ continues to review the potential impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak on legal aid providers and to consider what more might be done to support them. The Legal Aid Agency has published the details of the current options for financial relief available to providers during the COVID-19 outbreak at <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/financial-relief-for-legal-aid-practitioners" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/financial-relief-for-legal-aid-practitioners</a>.</p><p>The number of active housing legal aid providers is published by the Legal Aid Agency online, and has remained largely static since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak. The outbreak has affected the volume of work available to housing legal aid firms, and we are closely monitoring this impact.</p><p>At present housing advice is available at 434 offices in England and Wales. The volume of providers holding legal aid contracts at any given time is subject to change due to market forces and other factors. From March to the present date, 7 offices in total have ceased to provide housing services, due to reasons not specifically associated with the effects of COVID-19.</p><p>The Ministry of Justice held a consultation on increasing the number of requests for payment on account that may be made per year. The consultation closed on 16 June 2020, and the limit will be increased from two to four permissible within a twelve-month period. This will be implemented once the necessary updates to infrastructure are completed, and the impact of this change will be kept under review.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 62410 62411 question first answered 25/06/2020 16:43:13 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4030 label Biography information for Karl Turner