Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for stealing from the person of another for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for stealing from the person of another.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:
a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)
b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.
This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for possession of knives for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did tot receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for possession of knives.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:
a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)
b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.
This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for production, supply and possession with intent to supply Class A drugs for each year from 2020 to 2024, and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for production, supply, or possession with intent to supply Class A drugs.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:
a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)
b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.
This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for (a) criminal damage and (b) arson in each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for (i) criminal damage and (ii) arson from 2020 to 2024.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:
a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)
b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.
This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were convicted for possession of firearms for each year from 2020 to 2024; and how many people did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by year of conviction and number of previous occasions the offender has been convicted for possession of firearms.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The information requested is provided in the attached excel tables. These tables include data covering the period 2020 – 2024 on:
a) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence (all disposal types)
b) The number of offenders who were convicted of the specified offence but did not receive an immediate custodial sentence, by the number of previous convictions for that specified offence.
This data is not regularly published or held in an easily accessible format. The information supplied has been sourced from a bespoke retrieval from the Police National Computer database.
Asked by: Robbie Moore (Conservative - Keighley and Ilkley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many notifications transcription providers have made to HMCTS in each of the last five years under the bulk or systematic request provisions of the HMCTS transcription contracts; and what data HMCTS holds on the total number of transcript requests received by providers each year.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Transcription service providers are required, under the terms of their contracts to notify HMCTS where they receive bulk or systematic requests for transcripts and seek approval before continuing such supply. These notifications are made on a case-by-case as they arise.
HM Courts and Tribunal Service does not hold a centrally collated record of the total number of such notifications made by providers in each of the last five years.
Transcription requests are placed directly with providers by a range of customers, including HMCTS, other public bodies, legal representatives and members of the public. While providers are required to supply management information to HMCTS for contract assurance and performance monitoring purposes, HMCTS does not hold a record of the total number of transcript requests received by providers in each year.
Asked by: Robbie Moore (Conservative - Keighley and Ilkley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, following notifications by transcription providers of bulk or systematic requests for court transcripts, which individuals or organisations have been (a) approved and (b) refused permission to continue receiving transcripts on that basis; and what reasons were given for any refusals.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Under the terms of HMCTS transcription contracts, transcription providers are required to notify HMCTS where they receive bulk or systematic requests for court transcripts and seek approval before continuing such supply. Any consideration of such notifications is undertaken on a case-by-case basis.
HMCTS does not hold a centrally collated record of the individuals or organisations that have been approved or refused permission to continue receiving transcripts following such notifications.
Decisions are taken having regard to the specific circumstances of each request, including compliance with reporting restrictions, data protection and security requirements. HMCTS does not record reasons for refusal.
Asked by: Perran Moon (Labour - Camborne and Redruth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Government plans to bring section 199 of the Equality Act 2010 into force.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Since section 199 of the Equality Act 2010 was enacted, no date has been set for this section to come into force. Section 199 relates to a longstanding common law presumption dating back centuries.
As part of its ongoing duty to consider equalities impacts, the Government considers that husbands and wives have equal access to financial remedy orders under Part II of the Matrimonial Causes Act (MCA) 1973.
Asked by: Perran Moon (Labour - Camborne and Redruth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the presumption of advancement on protection from discrimination.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Since section 199 of the Equality Act 2010 was enacted, no date has been set for this section to come into force. Section 199 relates to a longstanding common law presumption dating back centuries.
As part of its ongoing duty to consider equalities impacts, the Government considers that husbands and wives have equal access to financial remedy orders under Part II of the Matrimonial Causes Act (MCA) 1973.
Asked by: Mary Glindon (Labour - Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions his Department has had with Prisoner Escort and Custody Services contractors who have escorted prisoners to court late and were attributable to trials being delayed.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
HMPPS holds regular contract management boards and strategic partnership boards with Prisoner Escort and Custody Services (PECS) suppliers to review performance, including any instances where late arrival at court has been attributed to supplier actions. These discussions are informed by assured Court Exception Report data from courts and focus on identifying root causes, agreeing corrective actions and applying contractual levers where appropriate. To strengthen system wide oversight, a Prisoner Delivery Oversight Board has been established, chaired by Lord Timpson and Minister Sackman, with representation from key Criminal Justice System partners, and will meet quarterly.
Evidence from recent performance reporting shows consistent levels of PECS Supplier delivery to court, with supplier attributable delays remaining low relative to overall court production volumes. In 2025, overall criminal justice system delivery to court was on time in 98.19% of cases; PECS suppliers met contractual expectations by delivering prisoners to court on time in 99.91% of cases. PECS supplier attributable delays represent a small proportion of overall court delays, which are approximately 8% as a whole.
The Department continually assesses the effectiveness of service credits within PECS contracts as part of its performance management framework. Service credits are applied where outcomes fall below contractual standards and act as an incentive to maintain high levels of punctuality and operational performance. Where performance concerns arise, service credits are accompanied by improvement plans and closer operational scrutiny to drive sustained improvement rather than relying on financial levers alone.