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1306901

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Public Health Funerals: Fees and Charges
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if his Department will take steps to help reduce the level of local authority burial fees; and what support the Government provides to people who cannot meet the cost of burials.
tabling member constituency	Dudley North
tabling member printed	Marco Longhi
uin	178628
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2021 answer text <p>Local authorities are responsible for their own budgets and making decisions on local spending in line with local priorities. This is entirely appropriate, given that central government cannot predict exactly what the cost of a local service will be. In line with this principle, public burial authorities have the power to set their charges at levels they consider to be appropriate.</p><p>The Funeral Expenses Payments scheme provides a significant contribution towards the cost of a simple, respectful funeral arranged by recipients of certain income based benefits or tax credits. The scheme pays necessary burial and cremation costs in full, as defined by legislation, plus up to £1000 for other expenses such as the cost of a coffin, church and funeral director fees, Scotland has a similar scheme, the Funeral Support Payment scheme. Support for funeral costs for all young people under 18 is provided by the Children’s Funeral Fund for England, with similar schemes in Scotland and Wales. Interest-free Social Fund Budgeting Loans and Universal Credit Budgeting Advances can also be used for funeral expenses. Further financial support is available through Bereavement Support Payments which help working age people whose spouse or civil partner dies.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 20/04/2021 15:38:42 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4789 label Biography information for Marco Longhi

1306979

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Office of the Public Guardian: Staff
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff are employed by the Office of the Public Guardian (a) in total and (b) to investigate powers of attorney and safeguarding; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Harrow West
tabling member printed	Gareth Thomas
uin	178685
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2021 answer text <p>OPG currently employs 1,462 people. 93 of these people currently work within the LPA Investigation unit and 11 work in the deputyship’s investigations team. 28 currently work within the Investigations, Triage and Support Team (ITAS) – giving a total of 132 people working within this area.</p><p> </p><p>This information was taken from SOP, the Ministry of Justice’s HR system. The figures include all OPG employees, including those who are currently off strength, for example those out on loan or on secondment to other organisations, sick or parental leave or on career breaks. They do no include contractors or temporary clerical workers provided by employment agencies.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 20/04/2021 14:13:42 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	177 label Biography information for Gareth Thomas

1307121

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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, what plans his Department has to bring forward legislative proposals to ensure that sentencing is commensurate with the severity of the crime.
tabling member constituency	Tatton
tabling member printed	Esther McVey
uin	178684
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2021 answer text <p>This government is serious about fighting crime, protecting the public and creating a criminal justice system that people have confidence in. Sentencing plays a crucial role in this: it is one of the key ways through which the public, victims, and offenders see justice being done, and this government is clear that sentencing must be commensurate with the severity of the crime committed.</p><p>On the 9<sup>th</sup> March the government introduced the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill (PCSC Bill). This legislation will bring forward the new, smarter approach to sentencing laid out in the Sentencing White Paper published in September 2020.</p><p>Serious sexual and violent offenders must spend as much of their sentence behind bars as possible in order to reflect the severity of their crimes. The PCSC Bill will:</p><ul><ul><li>End automatic halfway release from prison for an additional cohort of serious sexual and violent offenders;</li><li>Make a Whole Life Order the starting point for the premeditated murder of a child, as well as allowing judges to hand out this maximum punishment to 18-20 year olds in exceptional cases;</li><li>Introduce a new power to prevent the automatic early release of prisoners who become a significant public protection concern while in custody; and</li><li>Double the maximum penalty for assaulting an emergency worker.</li></ul></ul><p> </p><p>Delivering public protection and ensuring that sentencing is commensurate with the severity of the crime is not just about better use of custody. The PCSC Bill will make community sentences more effective so that they offer an appropriate level of punishment but also address the underlying drivers of offending, by:</p><ul><ul><li>Piloting a problem-solving court approach for certain community and suspended sentence orders;</li><li>Improving national consistency for adult Out of Court Disposals; and</li><li>Extending the use of Electronic Monitoring.</li></ul></ul><p> </p><p>The government is pleased that the PCSC Bill was given a Second Reading on 16<sup>th</sup> March by a large majority. As we are approaching the end of the current session, the House of Commons agreed to carry over consideration of the Bill to the next session. Given the size of the Bill, it is right to allow time for MPs to consider the detail before starting their line-by-line scrutiny.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 20/04/2021 15:23:39 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey

1307171

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Coronavirus: Prisons
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment his Department has made of the risk of covid-19 infection in prisons for (a) prisoners and (b) prison officers.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull North
tabling member printed	Dame Diana Johnson
uin	178734
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The safety of our staff and those under our supervision remains our top priority. We have taken quick and decisive action – backed by Public Health England and Wales – to limit the spread of the virus.</p><p>Our measures have included restricting regimes, minimising inter-prison transfers and compartmentalising our prisons into different units to isolate the sick, shield the vulnerable and quarantine new arrivals. A comprehensive regular testing regime of both staff and prisoners is in place and we are also working closely with the NHS to support the roll-out of Covid-19 vaccinations for eligible groups in custody. Our experience and evidence gathering provides an indication that these measures have undoubtedly saved lives and limited the transmission of the virus in prisons.</p><p>Plans for easing restrictions in prisons (and re-introducing them where necessary) will be guided by public health advice alongside an operational assessment of what can be safely implemented, whilst ensuring we can keep staff and prisoners safe.</p><p>Increasing numbers of adult prisons are now progressing to Stage 3 regimes, as outlined in our National Framework (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-national-framework-for-prison-regimes-and-services" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-national-framework-for-prison-regimes-and-services</a>). We are keeping the level of restriction necessary under close review. We must continue to respond in a measured way in line with public health advice to ensure our approach is proportionate and legitimate, as we have done throughout the pandemic.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 15/04/2021 15:59:18 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	1533 label Biography information for Dame Diana Johnson

1307184

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Youth Courts
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 the size of the case backlog in the youth court system.
tabling member constituency	Hove
tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
uin	178747
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2021 answer text <p>In 2020 outstanding youth cases at the magistrates' court reached an annual peak of 12,138 in June, then consistently fell to 9,930 cases by December. In the same period, outstanding youth cases at the Crown Court remained stable, peaking at 665 in October then falling to 629 by December.</p><p>The focus for 2021 will be to drive the continued reduction of outstanding cases in the Youth Court, working with agencies across the Criminal Justice System to minimise delays.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 20/04/2021 14:20:48 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

1307186

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Bail
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many suspects in (a) murder and (b) rape cases received bail in each of the last five calendar years.
tabling member constituency	Hove
tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
uin	178749
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice has published information on defendants remanded on bail in England and Wales up to December 2019, prior to court, at magistrates’ court and at Crown Court:</p><p> </p><p>Remand status prior to court (relating to suspects) is available in the magistrates’ court data tool and is labelled ‘Remand status with Police’.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Magistrates’ court</strong></p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/888658/remands-magistrates-court-tool-2019.xlsx" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/888658/remands-magistrates-court-tool-2019.xlsx</a></p><p> </p><p><strong>Crown Court</strong></p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/888657/remands-crown-court-tool-2019.xlsx" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/888657/remands-crown-court-tool-2019.xlsx</a></p><p> </p><p>In the data tools, search for murder and rape using the ‘Offence’ filter and the pivot table will populate with the number of defendants by principal (i.e. most serious) remand status for the chosen offences.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 15/04/2021 16:05:43 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

1307316

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Youth Offending Teams: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to publish the Covid Recovery Plans submitted by youth offending teams to the Youth Justice Board.
tabling member constituency	Hove
tabling member printed	Peter Kyle
uin	179295
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2021 answer text <p>The Youth Justice Board has oversight of Youth Offending Teams (YOTs) and has received Covid-19 Recovery Plans from each YOT. There is no current plan for MoJ or the YJB to publish Covid-19 Recovery Plans as it is the responsibility of local authorities to make their individual plans available to the public.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk question first answered 20/04/2021 14:23:15 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4505 label Biography information for Peter Kyle

1307468

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Reoffenders
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Prison Reform Trust No Life, No Freedom, No Future: The experiences of prisoners recalled under the sentence of Imprisonment, published on 3 December 2020; and what plans they have publish a response to that report.
tabling member printed	Lord Hylton
uin	HL14758
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2021 answer text <p>The Government values the work of the Prison Reform Trust and, specifically, the ongoing dialogue with the Trust as to how best to support those serving the sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP), whether in prison or in the community.</p><p> </p><p>The Government and officials acknowledge that recalling any offender to custody involves some disruption. However, we have not identified cases of “unnecessary” recalls of offenders subject to IPP licences. HM Chief Inspector of Probation found in a thematic review of the Probation Service’s culture and practice on recall, published on 10 November last year, that offender managers are considering, properly, public protection when deciding how to respond to evidence that offenders have breached their licence conditions in such a way as to indicate escalating risk. Thus, where an offender on an IPP licence is recalled to custody, it is because the Probation Service has concluded that the offender’s risk is now too high for it to be managed effectively in the community, even with the imposition of additional licence conditions.</p><p> </p><p>However, offender managers must always consider whether there are safe alternatives to recall when responding to breaches of licence conditions and evidence of increased risk. Additionally, HM Prison and Probation Service is working to improve the quality and timeliness of its risk assessments following recall, so that the Parole Board may in some cases safely direct the re-release of recalled offenders on an IPP licence earlier than is currently the case.</p> answering member printed Lord Wolfson of Tredegar question first answered 26/04/2021 16:19:02 answering member 4901 label Biography information for Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
tabling member	2018 label Biography information for Lord Hylton

1307473

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Liability
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the recommendation made by the Law Commission as part of its project on Insanity and automatism in 2013, what steps the Government is taking to bring forward legislative proposals to replace the common law defence of insanity with a new defence of being not criminally responsible by reason of recognised medical condition.
tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
uin	179307
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Government has considered the proposals in the Law Commission’s 2013 discussion paper.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst we note the Law Commission’s proposals on the potential to update the law in this area, we have no current plans to bring forward legislative proposals in relation to this rarely used defence. However, we continue to keep this, and the wider and related law on unfitness to plead, under review.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 179308 question first answered 15/04/2021 15:46:44 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq

1307476

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Liability
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 the adequacy of the common law defence of insanity; and what steps the Government plans to take to improve the law on criminal insanity.
tabling member constituency	Ealing Central and Acton
tabling member printed	Dr Rupa Huq
uin	179308
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Government has considered the proposals in the Law Commission’s 2013 discussion paper.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst we note the Law Commission’s proposals on the potential to update the law in this area, we have no current plans to bring forward legislative proposals in relation to this rarely used defence. However, we continue to keep this, and the wider and related law on unfitness to plead, under review.</p> answering member constituency Cheltenham answering member printed Alex Chalk grouped question UIN 179307 question first answered 15/04/2021 15:46:44 answering member 4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk
tabling member	4511 label Biography information for Dr Rupa Huq