Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will provide a breakdown of offences by the nationality of the serving inmate.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Our current approach to publication of nationality data is in line with that used during the previous Conservative Government and does not include a breakdown of offences by nationality of prisoners. However, we are monitoring the data that we collect and publish on the prison population and will keep this under review.

Foreign nationals who commit crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced. Where appropriate, the Ministry of Justice will work with the Home Office to pursue their deportation. Since 5 July 2024, more FNOs have been returned than in the same period 12 months prior.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether contracts agreed with the Prison Education Service will include provision for inflationary increases to budgets for each prison in each year.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The overall budget for the Prisoner Education Service is subject to the Ministry of Justice’s internal annual budget allocations process to set internal budgets following the Spending Review period, so it is not possible to comment on budgets at prison level for future years at present.

The indexation provisions in the circa. 70 service contracts within the Prisoner Education Service vary between the services to ensure they are proportionate and relevant to the services being delivered. The most significant contracts by value Core Education and Careers Information, Advice & Guidance currently include provision for an annual indexation of contract prices. The two indices that are used to calculate inflationary increases are as follows:

1) Average Weekly Earnings index for staff costs, and

2) Consumer Price Index for all non-staff costs.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has plans to lower the prison officer retirement age.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Prison officers are members of the Civil Service Pension scheme (CSPS), and the normal pension age (at which unreduced benefits can be taken) is linked to their state pension age.

We recognise the unique and challenging role that prison officers play in protecting the public and reducing reoffending. The Lord Chancellor has requested advice from officials on the pension age of prison officers, and we will continue to engage with trade unions as this is considered.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Sikhs are employed in her Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice records Sikh or Sikhism, as a religion or belief and not as an ethnicity.

Please refer to Civil Service Statistics 2024 Table A3 where statistics on religion or belief by department as at 31 March 2024 are published: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/civil-service-statistics-2024. This includes statistics on those recorded as ‘Sikh’.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has plans to raise the starting salary for prison officers.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Pay for Prison Officers is informed by independent recommendations made by the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB) through the annual pay review process.

On 22 May, the Government accepted all 13 of the independent recommendations put forward by the PSPRB for 2025/26. This year’s award represents an increase of at least 4% for all operational prison staff, delivering another real-terms pay rise on top of the one provided last summer.  This will bring the starting salary for an entry-level Prison Officer (on the national rate, 39 hours with unsocial hours) from £34,494 to £35,875 and will be effective 1 April 2025 when implemented.

We announced the 2025/26 award more than two months earlier than last year, keeping our promise to give prison staff more certainty about the pounds in their pockets.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many foreign-born prisoners are currently serving sentences for knife crime offences.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Statistics of this nature do not currently form part of our published statistics. Our current approach to publication of nationality data is in line with that used during the previous Conservative Government. However, we are monitoring the data that we collect and publish on the prison population and will keep this under review.

Foreign nationals who commit crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced. The Ministry of Justice will work with the Home Office to pursue their deportation. Since 5 July 2024, more FNOs have been returned than in the same period 12 months prior.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to introduce mandatory prison sentences for carrying bladed articles.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

This Government is committed to tackling knife crime as a priority. We are clear that those who carry knives unlawfully must face serious consequences, and that sentencing must reflect the harm these offences cause to victims and communities.

In recognition of the seriousness of offences related to knives, the courts already have robust powers to deal with knife-related offences. The maximum sentence for possession of a bladed article or threatening with an offensive weapon is 4 years’ imprisonment. The law also provides for minimum custodial sentences for repeat knife possession and for threatening with a weapon. Adults convicted of a second or subsequent possession offence face a minimum of six months in custody, while those aged 16 or 17 face a four-month Detention and Training Order. Where someone is actually harmed by a knife or offensive weapon, there are a range of offences that the offender may be charged with, such as causing grievous bodily harm. These can result in lengthy sentences, up to life imprisonment.

Minimum and mandatory sentences are also rare in England and Wales. This is because it is, rightly, the function of the independent judiciary to decide the sentence in each case subject to the maximum that Parliament has provided and any relevant Sentencing Guidelines published by the Sentencing Council.

The existing framework provides the right balance between ensuring robust penalties for knife crime, and allowing courts to tailor sentences to the individual case.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many courts and tribunals have been closed since 2015.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Since 2015, 90 courts and 4 tribunals have been permanently closed. All of these closures took place under the previous Government.

The figures do not include integrations, where workload remained in the local area by transferring to another building in close proximity, or courts that are temporarily closed.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will review the Guide to Judicial Conduct.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Lord Chancellor and Lady Chief Justice have a joint responsibility for judicial discipline. However, to preserve judicial independence, the statutory responsibility for the guidance of the judiciary, including for setting the conduct standards for the judiciary, is held by the Lady Chief Justice, Senior President of Tribunals and Chief Coroner, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively.

The Lord Chancellor has no role in this respect, and it is not constitutionally appropriate for the Government to review the judiciary’s guidance.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to review the system for bereavement damages.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Government is working to deliver a major series of reforms to the civil justice system and while the issue of bereavement damages is being kept under review, there are no immediate plans to undertake a formal review of this issue.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to strengthen the (a) legal rights and (b) financial protections of (i) survivors of domestic abuse and (ii) cohabiting partners; and when she plans to bring forward legislative proposals for reform in this area.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The financial difficulties that cohabitants, including survivors of domestic abuse, can face when their cohabiting relationships come to an end is a matter of concern. That is why the Government committed in its manifesto to strengthening the rights and protections for women in cohabiting couples. We will launch a public consultation later this year to build public consensus on what form those cohabitation protections should take.

The Government is also carefully considering the findings of the Law Commission’s scoping report on financial provision on divorce, including in relation to issues raised about domestic abuse. The Government will provide a response to this report in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people in prison convicted under joint enterprise law have autism.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice does not collect centrally information on whether a person in prison has autism, or whether their conviction related to joint enterprise.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff network events took place in her Department in May 2025; and what the names of those events were.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Staff networks are collaborative volunteer networks, organised by staff rather than the Department. The majority of staff time spent on network activities is voluntary and unpaid.

We are aware of seven events organised by networks in May 2025:

• Parenting in the Fast Lane: Managing work, life, and everything in between. Parents Network panel event.

• Meet the new MoJ Armed Forces Network and commemorate VE Day.

• My journey to Islam: A panel event hosted by the MoJ Muslim Network where colleagues explore their experience of joining Islam.

• Meet your staff networks: lunchtime marketplace event in Petty France.

• Parent’s Network and Safe Space Forum session on understanding the impact of domestic abuse.

• Frontline Staff Network Knowledge Sharing event: Tips for presenting data.

• Let’s Talk Menopause: Supporting the Workplace in Menopause (SWIM) Network Event for Managers.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether prisoners undertake (a) litter collection and (b) graffiti removal.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Prisoners currently can access community service work through Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) during the custodial element within their sentence.

The Prison Rules in England and Wales provide that a prisoner may be granted leave from prison for short periods on temporary licence. ROTL is an important rehabilitation tool which allows prisoners to participate in activities in the community which have been identified as serving a particular purpose in meeting their individual resettlement objectives. Suitable, risk assessed prisoners may be allowed out during the day to, for example, attend college, attend an interview, maintain/re-establish links with their family or undertake community work, such as litter clearance or graffiti removal. This helps them develop responsibility and gain valuable skills.

The decision to allow temporary release is taken by the prison governor, on behalf of the Secretary of State, who must always balance the needs of the prisoner and the purpose of the ROTL applied for, against the need to maintain public safety and the public’s confidence in the criminal justice system. Each decision is taken on a case-by-case basis to safeguard the public. Any breaches can result in additional time in custody.

In addition, Unpaid Work is the punitive community requirement set by the court. In 2023, around half of those on community sentences had such a requirement, with around 5 million hours delivered each year. This can include carrying out work such as litter clearance and graffiti removal.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has updated guidance on the use of single-sex facilities in response to the Supreme Court judgement in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex. Providers and government departments should note and follow the ruling.

It is important that we ensure dignity and respect for all. Trans people should have access to services they need but in keeping with the ruling.

The Government is considering the implications of the Court’s judgment, including what this means for Government buildings and policies, to ensure we are fully compliant with the ruling.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) signing and (b) ratifying the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The UK Government considers that the current domestic framework and legislation already prevents arbitrary arrests, prohibits torture and degrading treatment, and holds the Security and Intelligence Agencies to account. We therefore currently have no plans to sign or ratify the Convention on Enforced Disappearance.

We strongly condemn any instances of enforced disappearance internationally. We urge states to fully investigate any allegations, prosecute those responsible and provide justice to victims.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority claims from Scottish applicants remain unresolved more than (a) 12, (b) 24 and (c) 36 months after a judicial‑review judgment quashing the original decision.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The table below shows the number of applications for criminal injuries compensation which are unresolved more than (a) 12 months, (b) 24 months, and (c) 36 months after the Court of Session quashed the decision of the First-tier Tribunal in judicial review proceedings.

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 contains safeguards where an applicant is dissatisfied with the outcome of their application. All applicants have the right to request that their initial decision is reviewed by a different claims officer. If the applicant remains dissatisfied following review, they have the right to appeal to the independent First-tier Tribunal. Thereafter, an applicant can apply for ‘judicial review’ of the First-tier Tribunal’s decision. In Scotland, judicial review claims are heard by the Court of Session. In England & Wales, judicial review claims are heard by the Upper Tribunal.

We have answered ‘5 or fewer’ to mitigate the risk of individuals being identifiable from our response.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will review sentencing guidelines for animal cruelty offences in connection with (a) confining an animal in a hot vehicle and (b) other cases of causing unnecessary suffering to animals.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

Sentencing guidelines are developed and reviewed by the Sentencing Council for England and Wales, in fulfilment of its statutory duty to do so.

In July 2023, the Council issued guidelines on animal cruelty, which provide the Court with guidance on factors that should be considered, which may affect the sentence given. They set out different levels of sentence based on the harm caused and how culpable the offender is. This is available on its website at: https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/offences/crown-court/item/animal-cruelty/.

Whilst the Government has no current plans to ask the Council to consider reviewing the animal cruelty guidelines, it is open to individuals to approach the Council to ask that they do so.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people absconded while on bail awaiting trial in each of the last five years.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of people sentenced for failing to surrender to bail under section 6 of the Bail Act 1976 at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Legal Aid Agency is taking to engage with local legal aid providers to increase legal aid provision.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

It is vital that those who need legal aid—some of the most vulnerable people in our society—can access it wherever they live.

The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) monitors provider numbers in each procurement area and across all categories of law. It takes operational action where it can, to respond to market pressures that may arise.

At a local level, LAA hold market engagement events to understand challenges to service delivery for particular categories of law, considering how it can remove any barriers or manage concerns which could deter providers from bidding for a legal aid contract.

The LAA consults with provider representative bodies on any proposed contractual changes, with the aim of incentivising legal aid work. Acting on feedback the LAA has made changes to reduce perceived barriers to holding contracts such as increasing the use of remote working, amending supervisor standards and introducing greater flexibility in office requirements.

Legal aid contracts are now offered on an ‘always on’ basis, meaning providers can apply at any time, not just during a fixed bidding window as before. This flexible approach lets new organisations join when ready and allows providers to grow their services. It removes strict deadlines and helps ensure services are widely available. The new crime contract lasts ten years, twice as long as before, making it easier for firms to plan ahead and reducing paperwork. These changes were brought in following considerable market engagement and have been widely welcomed.

The LAA works closely with the Ministry of Justice on policy solutions concerning the supply of legal aid. The Department recently closed a consultation on uplifts to civil legal aid fees. Once implemented, these changes would inject an additional £20 million into the sector each year, and is currently consulting on funding of up to £92 million more a year for criminal legal aid solicitors.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions have been brought under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in the last three years for incidents involving dogs left in dangerously hot vehicles.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

However, data held centrally does not include information on whether defendants were prosecuted for offences related to “incidents involving dogs left in dangerously hot vehicles”.

This information may be held in court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information her Department holds on when the Legal Aid Agency's online services will be restored following the cyber attack on 23 April 2025.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

This is an unprecedented event involving sophisticated organised crime. It is an evolving situation and every effort is being made to restore systems following the criminal attack on our services. The Legal Aid Agency’s (LAA) digital services have been taken offline to negate the serious criminal threat and prevent further exposure of legal aid providers and users. We will not reopen the system until the appropriate steps have been taken to enable us to do so. We have been able to return some to internal use, enabling an improved ability to support criminal legal aid applications and payments.

The Government are committed to ensuring that operational delivery of legal aid continues. We have put in place business contingency plans to ensure that those most in need of legal support can continue to access the help that they need and that those providing vital legal services can be confident they will continue to receive payments whilst systems are offline. In this way we are continuing to provide legal aid to those who need in without interruption.

The recent data breach is the result of heinous criminal activity, but it was enabled by the fragility of the LAA’s IT systems as a result of the long years of underinvestment under the last Conservative Government. By contrast, since taking power this Government has prioritised work to reverse the damage of over a decade of under-investment. That includes the allocation of over £20 million in extra funding this year to stabilise and transform the Legal Aid Agency digital services. This investment will make the system more robust and resilient in the face of similar cyber-attacks in future.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many times the defence of reasonable chastisement has been raised in English courts since 2015; and whether it has led to any acquittals.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The information requested is not held centrally.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many N1 claim forms (CPR Part 7) were submitted in the most recent year for which figures are available, and how many of them indicated that the claim does, or will, include any issues under the Human Rights Act 1998.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The information requested is not held.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the volume of claims received by claim type: Civil justice statistics quarterly - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to reduce the backlog of crown court cases in the West Midlands.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

This Government inherited a record and rising courts backlog. For this financial year (2025/26), this Government is funding a record allocation of Crown Court sitting days to deliver swifter justice for victims – 110,000 sitting days this year, 4,000 higher than the last Government funded. However, the scale of the challenge is beyond what increasing sitting days can achieve. That is why we have commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to conduct a review of efficiency that will propose once-in-a-generation reform to deliver swifter justice for victims.

In the West Midlands:

• Over the past three years, the West Midlands Crown Court centres have experienced a significant increase in receipts, rising by 40%, a figure that surpasses the national average of 30%. This growth reflects the increasing demand on the judicial system in the region.
• In response to this rising caseload, the Crown Court centres in the West Midlands (Birmingham Crown Court and Wolverhampton Crown Court) have proactively increased their operational capacity, sitting a total of 5655 days in 2024/25 (an increase of 3.8% from 5450 days in 2023/24).
• Wolverhampton Crown Court has expanded its capacity from seven to eight courtrooms, with the addition of an extra courtroom at Telford Annex. Furthermore, in 2023 Wolverhampton welcomed an increase in circuit judges, and Birmingham saw an extra circuit judge last year, thus strengthening the judiciary to manage the rising volume of cases. Efforts are also underway to bolster judicial resources further, with plans for additional judicial recruitment in an upcoming campaign.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to undertake research on the potential impact of the offence of assault against an emergency worker on women.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the legislation relating to assaults on emergency workers, has not made an assessment of the impact, or potential impact, of the offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 on trends relating to the arrest or conviction of women. Nor does it plan to conduct further assessments or research relating specifically to the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Following changes made by provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 the then Government published an Equalities Impact Assessment of the changes on the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018. The assessment can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-crime-sentencing-and-courts-bill-2021-equality-statements/assault-on-emergency-workers-in-the-police-crime-sentencing-courts-bill-equalities-impact-assessment.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will conduct an equality impact assessment for the offence of assault against an emergency worker.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the legislation relating to assaults on emergency workers, has not made an assessment of the impact, or potential impact, of the offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 on trends relating to the arrest or conviction of women. Nor does it plan to conduct further assessments or research relating specifically to the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Following changes made by provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 the then Government published an Equalities Impact Assessment of the changes on the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018. The assessment can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-crime-sentencing-and-courts-bill-2021-equality-statements/assault-on-emergency-workers-in-the-police-crime-sentencing-courts-bill-equalities-impact-assessment.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the offence of assault against an emergency worker on trends in the level of (a) arrests and (b) convictions of women.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the legislation relating to assaults on emergency workers, has not made an assessment of the impact, or potential impact, of the offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 on trends relating to the arrest or conviction of women. Nor does it plan to conduct further assessments or research relating specifically to the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Following changes made by provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 the then Government published an Equalities Impact Assessment of the changes on the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018. The assessment can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-crime-sentencing-and-courts-bill-2021-equality-statements/assault-on-emergency-workers-in-the-police-crime-sentencing-courts-bill-equalities-impact-assessment.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the implementation of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice, which is responsible for the legislation relating to assaults on emergency workers, has not made an assessment of the impact, or potential impact, of the offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 on trends relating to the arrest or conviction of women. Nor does it plan to conduct further assessments or research relating specifically to the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018.

Following changes made by provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 the then Government published an Equalities Impact Assessment of the changes on the offence in the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018. The assessment can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/police-crime-sentencing-and-courts-bill-2021-equality-statements/assault-on-emergency-workers-in-the-police-crime-sentencing-courts-bill-equalities-impact-assessment.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people in prison for offences of (a) violence against the person, (b) sexual offences, (c) robbery, (d) theft offences, (e) criminal damage and arson, (f) drug offences, (g) possession of weapons, (h) public order offences, (i) miscellaneous crimes against society, (j) fraud offences, (k) summary non-motoring, (l) summary motoring and (m) offence not recorded are of (i) Asian or Asian British, (ii) Black or Black British, (iii) Mixed, (iv) White, (v) Chinese or other, (vi) not stated and (vii) unrecorded ethnicity.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The requested information is shown in the attached table.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she plans to review the governance of the Sentencing Council.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The Lord Chancellor is currently undertaking a review of the Sentencing Council’s role and powers and has indicated that she will introduce reforms in future legislation, if considered necessary

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to introduce AI integration and camera use in family law proceedings.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is at the heart of the Government’s plan to kickstart an era of economic growth, transform how we deliver public services, and boost living standards for working people across the country. Within the Ministry of Justice, we are testing and adopting AI to improve the experience and efficiency within our courts.

AI has the potential to enable service improvements across HM Courts & Tribunals Service, and we are exploring how it can be applied responsibly to our operations and services, including to support document processing, transcription, summarisation and translation. The use of AI in the courts and tribunals will be focused on accelerating and assisting people’s work, not automating decisions.

All use of artificial intelligence in the Ministry of Justice is aligned with the AI Playbook for the UK Government and the Algorithmic Transparency Reporting Standard. The Lady Chief Justice and Senior President of Tribunals issued AI Guidance for the judiciary in December 2023.

There are currently no live AI or predictive analytics systems in use in the Family Courts.

We are running early-stage discovery and proof of concept projects to test the potential value of AI in the Family Courts as follows:

1. A tool to support the judiciary with anonymisation and redaction of judgments in support enhancing family court transparency by increasing the number of judgments published in the Family Courts.
2. Microsoft Copilot 365 licenses are being trialled by members of the judiciary to test the value in supporting routine activities, including in the Family Courts.

Remote hearings in family proceedings, often conducted via telephone or video conferencing, are already regularly used where the judge with conduct of the case feels it is appropriate.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total annual cost of providing legal aid to foreign nationals appealing a deportation order or contesting a criminal conviction.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Information on foreign national offenders contesting a criminal conviction is not centrally held.

Expenditure relating to deportation and removal appeals is published as part of the Legal Aid Agency’s Official Statistics as part of its ‘detailed civil data’ collection. Data for the last ten years can be found in the table below. Please note that due to the way information is recorded it is not possible to distinguish between costs relating to deportation matters (concerning foreign national offenders) and those relating to removal matters (e.g. individual’s whose asylum or immigration applications have been unsuccessful).

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Family Court Quarterly Statistics, published on 27 March 2025, for what reason 8,150 bereaved families waited over six months for the Probate Registry to issue grants of (a) probate and (b) administration in 2024.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) retains complaint data concerning lost documentation for a period of five years. HMCTS conducts regular meetings with our bulk scanning provider to review occurrences of lost documents and is committed to continually enhancing our systems to minimize these incidents.

The open probate caseload includes individual cases that may experience delays due to various factors such as family disputes or insufficient information being provided by the applicants. HMCTS actively contacts users to facilitate the progression of cases requiring additional information. Official statistics on the open caseload are regularly published via the following link: Family Court Statistics Quarterly - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information her Department holds on the number of documents lost by the Probate Registry in each of the last ten years.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) retains complaint data concerning lost documentation for a period of five years. HMCTS conducts regular meetings with our bulk scanning provider to review occurrences of lost documents and is committed to continually enhancing our systems to minimize these incidents.

The open probate caseload includes individual cases that may experience delays due to various factors such as family disputes or insufficient information being provided by the applicants. HMCTS actively contacts users to facilitate the progression of cases requiring additional information. Official statistics on the open caseload are regularly published via the following link: Family Court Statistics Quarterly - GOV.UK.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she plans to review the threshold at which miscarriage of justice claimants can claim for compensation.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

Individuals who have had their convictions quashed following an out of time appeal are eligible to apply for compensation through the statutory Miscarriages of Justice Application Service (MOJAS). The Law Commission is currently undertaking a review of the criminal appeals process, including the MOJAS scheme and the test for compensation. I will be considering their findings once their review is complete.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to support employment opportunities for ex-offenders.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

We know that finding employment after release reduces the chance of reoffending significantly, by up to nine percentage points. That is why the Government’s manifesto commits to break the cycle of reoffending by better supporting prisons to link up with employers and the voluntary sector to get more people with convictions into work.

Key employment roles are in place across all 93 resettlement prisons to prepare prisoners for work on release, match them to jobs and provide critical ID documents to secure work and a home.

We have launched regional Employment Councils which, for the first time, brings businesses together with prisons, probation and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to support offenders leaving prison. This builds on the work of Employment Advisory Boards linking prisons with business leaders to ensure prisoners have the skills and training employers need to meet labour market demand.

In addition, HM Prison and Probation Service’s Creating Future Opportunities programme offers tailored support for ex-offenders - particularly those who are furthest from the labour market - to secure employment, training and education opportunities for release.

Supporting further, the criminal records regime is designed to strike a balance providing employers with the information they need to make safer recruitment decisions and enabling ex-offenders to rebuild their lives. We also work closely with DWP to ensure support is in place for ex-offenders in the community, for example through co-location of services.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to reduce rates of reoffending for antisocial behaviour.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

As part of the Safer Streets Mission, the Government is committed to improving confidence in policing and the local response to crime, including anti-social behaviour. Anti-social behaviour can be characterised by a range of different offence types, and we are responding in ways that are tough on crime whilst also supporting offenders to turn their backs on their offending behaviour.

We are tackling the root causes of reoffending by investing in a range of interventions which address offenders’ underlying criminogenic needs and support their rehabilitation journey. This includes accommodation, employment and substance misuse treatment services. Depending on the specific risks and needs of the offender, a range of accredited programmes, designed to address offending behaviour, are also available.

We are also making sure that punishment is tough. To do this, we will impose new unpaid work orders to ensure offenders pay back to society. For the most problematic and persistent community offenders, Integrated Offender Management reduces reoffending through intensive joint police-probation supervision and access to pathways and services that address underlying criminogenic needs. We will also expand the availability of Intensive Supervision Courts to address the causes of their offending behaviour.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reason it is her policy to no longer allow the Prison Fellowship Sycamore Tree Programme to operate in prisons.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

All interventions that aim to change attitudes, thinking, emotions or behaviour are governed by the National Framework for Interventions Policy Framework issued by HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS): National Framework for Interventions Policy Framework - GOV.UK.

The minimum standards set out in the National Framework are based on evidence of effectiveness gathered from a range of countries. A review of the Sycamore Tree programme found that it did not meet the required standards, and HMPPS therefore decided that it should no longer be delivered in prisons.

HMPPS is grateful to the provider of the programme, the Prison Fellowship, for the work it has undertaken over many years. HMPPS continues to work with the Prison Fellowship on other services it provides in prisons in England and Wales.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many victims of grooming gangs have applied for compensation; and how many have been rejected.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) deeply sympathises with all victims of sexual crimes and recognises the trauma suffered by victims of these abhorrent offences.

CICA cannot provide figures about compensation to victims of grooming gangs. This is because awards of compensation under the statutory Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme are made for the physical and/or mental injuries sustained by the victim rather than the type of offence committed.

Each claim for compensation is considered on its own facts and decided using all the information available from the applicant, the police, and other relevant sources.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the budget for victim and witness support services will be lower in 2025-26 than 2024-25.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice remains committed to supporting victims and witnesses of crime. For the 2025–26 financial year, the Department has protected funding levels for ringfenced sexual violence and domestic abuse support, maintaining them at the same level as in 2024–25.

There has been a small reduction to the core budget allocated to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), who are responsible for commissioning local victim support services based on assessed need. This decision was taken in the context of a challenging fiscal environment left behind by the previous Government.

The Department continues to work closely with PCCs and sector partners to support the delivery of high-quality services.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the Spending Review 2025 on the safeguarding of victims of (a) sexual and (b) domestic abuse.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Government recognises the scale of violence against women and girls and is treating it as a national emergency. A new cross-government strategy to tackle this will be published this summer.

Action has already been taken by piloting Domestic Abuse Protection Orders; introducing new offences for sexually explicit deepfakes, intimate image abuse and spiking and providing free transcripts of sentencing remarks to victims of sexual offences in the Crown Court.

We will also establish specialist rape and sexual offences teams in every police force and introduce free independent legal advice for victims of adult rape.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what legal redress is available to victims of rogue traders where alleged misconduct spans multiple jurisdictions in (a) England and (b) Northern Ireland.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

A range of legal redress options are available to those who consider they have fallen victim to rogue traders, including both civil and criminal justice remedies. Citizens Advice provide help and information on consumer rights in England and Wales (and equivalent agencies in Northern Ireland) as well as being able to refer individuals to partner consumer organisations for additional help or enforcement, such as Trading Standards.

Civil claims for the recovery of assets or compensation may be pursued under consumer rights legislation, much of which applies across the United Kingdom. Claims are generally brought in whichever jurisdiction the defendant is domiciled, although the court will determine whether it, or the courts of another jurisdiction, is the more appropriate forum to hear the dispute between the parties.

Consumers have rights to redress for misleading actions under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Act 2024. Redress includes the right to unwind the contract, claim a discount and claim damages. Further, the DMCC Act makes provisions for enforcers and courts to include enhanced consumer measures in undertakings and enforcement orders. This includes compensation or other redress to consumers who have suffered loss as a result of certain breaches of consumer law.

Criminal justice remedies may also be applicable, such as offences under the Fraud Act 2006 (for example fraud by false representation) and should be reported to the police.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship opportunities within her Department.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.

Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’, will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of convictions for the offence of assault against an emergency worker in 2024 were in relation to incidents in which the victim was a police officer.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions and convictions across England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-justice-statistics. The data tool includes the number of convictions for an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 in 2024.

Information on the number of males and females who were proceeded against and convicted for these offences is available within the published data and can be accessed by filtering the ‘overall volumes’ dataset by sex. This data is held on a principal-offence basis and therefore reports information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt for.

The Ministry of Justice does not centrally record the specific occupation of the victim of an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 so it is not possible, without disproportionate cost, to state the proportion of emergency worker victims who were police officers, or the number or proportion of women convicted of an assault on a police officer under the 2018 Act offence.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of convictions of women for the offence of assault against an emergency worker in 2024 related to an incident where the victim was a police officer.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions and convictions across England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-justice-statistics. The data tool includes the number of convictions for an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 in 2024.

Information on the number of males and females who were proceeded against and convicted for these offences is available within the published data and can be accessed by filtering the ‘overall volumes’ dataset by sex. This data is held on a principal-offence basis and therefore reports information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt for.

The Ministry of Justice does not centrally record the specific occupation of the victim of an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 so it is not possible, without disproportionate cost, to state the proportion of emergency worker victims who were police officers, or the number or proportion of women convicted of an assault on a police officer under the 2018 Act offence.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of people convicted for the offence of assault against an emergency worker in 2024 were women.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions and convictions across England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-justice-statistics. The data tool includes the number of convictions for an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 in 2024.

Information on the number of males and females who were proceeded against and convicted for these offences is available within the published data and can be accessed by filtering the ‘overall volumes’ dataset by sex. This data is held on a principal-offence basis and therefore reports information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt for.

The Ministry of Justice does not centrally record the specific occupation of the victim of an offence under section 1 of the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 so it is not possible, without disproportionate cost, to state the proportion of emergency worker victims who were police officers, or the number or proportion of women convicted of an assault on a police officer under the 2018 Act offence.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the safety of judges.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Secretary of State for Justice regards judicial office holders' safety with great importance. This is a matter that the Ministry of Justice takes very seriously.

There are a range of judicial security policies and procedures in place to protect judicial office holders inside of court, outside of court and online. HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) works jointly with both the Judicial Office and the Police to deliver these. Over £20m in additional funding in 2025/26 has been allocated to a programme of works to further strengthen the existing arrangements, and Ministry of Justice and HMCTS are working with the Security Taskforce, commissioned by the Lady Chief Justice and chaired by Deputy Senior Presiding Judge Mrs Justice Yip, to consider opportunities for further improvement.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions related to illegal immigration have been initiated in Fylde constituency in the past year.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions for immigration offences at criminal courts in England and Wales by Police Force Area in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Prosecutions data held by the Ministry of Justice relates to the location of the court which delivered the outcome of that prosecution, not where the case was initiated.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether prisoners over the age of 50 with complex or multiple needs are still considered to be a separate cohort.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

We have always recognised the distinct needs of older prisoners, some of whom can have complex health and social care requirements.

We welcome the Independent Sentencing Review’s recommendation to produce a national strategy for older prisoners, including those with complex or multiple needs and are currently speaking to partners to agree how we take this forward.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government, following the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 30 October 2024 (HL1966), how many subcontractors to ISG Limited the Ministry of Justice has been in contact with; what assistance the department has provided or may be able to provide to subcontractors whose payments were not available in the relevant project bank account; and what has been the outcome of the department's work with EY to establish whether the sums remaining in project bank accounts were correct.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice has been in contact with c.350 subcontractors of ISG Construction Limited. The Department has used a dedicated mailbox for this purpose and issued an update letter to subcontractors on 6 March 2025.

Since ISG entered administration, the Department has worked to minimise the impact on subcontractors. We enabled the swift return of subcontractor’s tools and equipment from affected sites and are supporting subcontractors to retrieve any materials that were on site with the cooperation of the Administrator.

The Ministry of Justice did not have a direct contractual relationship with ISG’s subcontractors and the Department’s assessment to date is that there is no obligation to act as the guarantor of all of ISG’s payments to its subcontractors. Payment by the Ministry of Justice into the project bank account does not create a direct contractual relationship between the Department and subcontractors.

Due to ongoing legal and commercial sensitivities, we are unable to comment on the final part of the question regarding the outcome of our engagement with EY.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Victims' Code is enforceable; and what mechanisms are available to victims to ensure that criminal justice agencies comply with that code.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We are committed to ensuring that victims receive the service they deserve under the Code. This is why earlier this year we commenced the new statutory obligation from the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which requires those who provide Code services to comply with the Code unless there is a good reason not to. We have also commenced other measures from the 2024 Act that will help the Victims’ Commissioner to hold bodies to account for how they are delivering for victims, including by placing a duty on certain authorities to respond to the Commissioner’s recommendations and to cooperate with reasonable requests from the Commissioner.

We are building on these powers through the Victims and Courts Bill, which will provide the Victims’ Commissioner with new tools to drive systemic change. We will also consult on a new Code in due course to make sure we get the foundations for victims right.

If victims feel that they have not received the service they can expect as set out in the Victims’ Code, there are formal complaints processes that service providers are required to provide. If victims are not happy with a service provider’s complaint response, they can now complain directly to the Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman without going through an MP.

The Government is committed to ensuring that victims can access the information and support they need. The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 created a framework to monitor criminal justice agencies' compliance with the Victims' Code, including legislative duties for agencies to collect and share information on Code compliance.

The framework has not yet been commenced - preparatory work is underway, for example actively engaging with criminal justice agencies on the underlying data that will support the development of the framework.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when she plans to commence section 8 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2025; and what steps she is taking produce the framework to review compliance with the Victims Code.

Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)

We are committed to ensuring that victims receive the service they deserve under the Code. This is why earlier this year we commenced the new statutory obligation from the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which requires those who provide Code services to comply with the Code unless there is a good reason not to. We have also commenced other measures from the 2024 Act that will help the Victims’ Commissioner to hold bodies to account for how they are delivering for victims, including by placing a duty on certain authorities to respond to the Commissioner’s recommendations and to cooperate with reasonable requests from the Commissioner.

We are building on these powers through the Victims and Courts Bill, which will provide the Victims’ Commissioner with new tools to drive systemic change. We will also consult on a new Code in due course to make sure we get the foundations for victims right.

If victims feel that they have not received the service they can expect as set out in the Victims’ Code, there are formal complaints processes that service providers are required to provide. If victims are not happy with a service provider’s complaint response, they can now complain directly to the Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman without going through an MP.

The Government is committed to ensuring that victims can access the information and support they need. The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 created a framework to monitor criminal justice agencies' compliance with the Victims' Code, including legislative duties for agencies to collect and share information on Code compliance.

The framework has not yet been commenced - preparatory work is underway, for example actively engaging with criminal justice agencies on the underlying data that will support the development of the framework.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much the Ministry of Justice has spent in each year since 2020 under the RM6141 and RM6302 language services frameworks; and whether the department has used or maintained any separate or competing frameworks, contracts or commercial routes for the procurement of language services during the same period, and, if so, how much has been spent through them.

Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Ministry of Justice has not called off against Crown Commercial Service frameworks RM 6141 (Language Services) or its successor RM 6302 at any point since 2020; spend under both frameworks in every year is therefore £0. The timing of available frameworks did not align with the Department’s needs. Timelines have since been aligned for the following round of tendering.

Instead, the Department has continued to meet its interpretation and translation needs through its MoJ Language-Services Framework, first established in 2012 and re-let in 2016 following open competition. Courts also operate a non-contracted, or “off-contract” process, typically to cover requirements that arise at short notice and those that are more challenging to fulfil, such as the requirement for languages that are rare or scarce. The use of off-contract interpreters allows hearings to go ahead, to continue the delivery of justice. The next generation of contracts, currently being procured, include the use of a secondary supplier of interpreters, specifically to source those short notice bookings, and to bring this spend on-contract, with benefits such as improved data and value for money. Furthermore, we are the only organisation to also utilise an independent quality assurance supplier of these services.

The arrangement is open for other public-sector bodies to use, but is let independently of the CCS frameworks so that the Ministry of Justice can:

• specify specialist justice-sector safeguarding and quality-assurance requirements (for example, security-vetting, enhanced complaints handling and independent quality sampling);
• obtain greater transparency of performance data to support quarterly published statistics; and
• secure competitive pricing based on the Ministry of Justice’s high-volume demand profile.

Expenditure recorded against the MoJ framework since 2020 is below:

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of women remanded in custody were (1) not sentenced to prison, and (2) sentenced to a short prison term less than the period on remand, in each of the past three years.

Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The percentage of women remanded in custody that were not sentenced to prison was 52% in 2022 and 2023. This increased slightly to 54% in 2024.

Percentage of women remanded in custody not receiving immediate custodial sentence

• Prisoners’ sentences are counted only once in these figures, at the court where they were sentenced: either at Magistrates’ or Crown Court.

• Separate Magistrates’ and Crown Court figures are included in the table to show the varying custodial sentence rates, which are reflective of the different types of case sentenced at Magistrates’ and Crown courts.

• Prisoners were remanded at some point in the proceedings, for any length of time (i.e. not necessarily remanded throughout court proceedings).

• Further important caveats are found in the ‘Notes’ tab of the data source "Remands data tool: 2017 to 2024" (particularly notes 27-31), which is available through the following link: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: December 2024 - GOV.UK.

Information relating to the total time spent on custodial remand is not centrally held by the Ministry of Justice, due to the considerable complexity in interpreting custodial journeys, which may include multiple cases in parallel. Although the Department has released estimates in the past, it has since been identified that results from the methodology previously used may no longer be accurate, and on that basis the Ministry of Justice cannot continue to use them. The Department is, however, working to improve its data and insights around this cohort of prisoners.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of (a) staffing shortages and (b) interpreter availability on delays in magistrates’ courts.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice does not collect data on ineffective trials specifically caused by staffing shortages within HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS). However, we monitor staffing levels closely and do not assess them to be a significant driver of ineffective trials in magistrates’ courts.

Staffing levels across HMCTS have remained broadly stable, with administrative staffing at junior grades (AA–EO) holding steady, and staffing at more senior grades (HEO–G6), including legal and administrative roles, showing an upward trend. These patterns reflect continued investment in workforce capacity and ongoing recruitment activity.

We recognise the importance of a reliable and efficient court system, and the impact on victims when trials do not proceed as planned. That is why the Lord Chancellor has appointed Sir Brian Leveson to conduct an Independent Review of the Criminal Courts. Phase 2 of the review will consider the efficiency and timeliness of processes of the criminal courts through charge to conviction/acquittal.

The Ministry of Justice regularly monitors the impact of interpreter availability on court proceedings. According to the latest data published in the “Trial effectiveness in the courts” tool (covering up to December 2024), there were 364 ineffective trials in magistrates’ courts between July and December 2024 due to the unavailability of an interpreter. This represents 4% of all ineffective trials and less than 1% of all listed trials during that period.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of rehabilitation practices used at HMP Latchmere House on reducing reoffending.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

I refer the hon. Member to my answer on 31 March 2025 to Question 42652.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate she has made of the proportion of magistrates’ court trials listed that did not go ahead on the scheduled day since July 2024; and what the primary recorded reasons were for such delays.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of ineffective trials at the magistrates’ courts across England and Wales in the “Trial effective in the courts” data tool (latest to December 2024). This can be downloaded from the Criminal Court Statistics landing page here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-court-statistics.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many criminal trials in magistrates’ courts were delayed or adjourned due to (a) the late arrival of prison vans, (b) administrative errors and (c) the absence of an interpreter since July 2024.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of ineffective trials at the magistrates’ courts across England and Wales in the “Trial effective in the courts” data tool (latest to December 2024). This can be downloaded from the Criminal Court Statistics landing page here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-court-statistics.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times an interpreter was requested in criminal cases in magistrates’ courts since July 2024; and in how many of those cases the interpreter did not attend.

Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average cost to prisoners is of the provision of television access in prison cells.

Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

The cost per prisoner in establishments in the adult estate is 50 pence per week if the prisoner is sharing a cell, and £1 per week for prisoners in a single cell.

Children and young people in the youth secure estate are not charged for use of televisions.

We call on the Government to urgently review the possible penalties for non-violent offences arising from social media posts, including the use of prison.

We urge the UK Government to ban chemical castration as a means of treating or rehabilitating sex offenders and enabling early release based on undergoing such procedures. We think this practice raises serious concerns about ethics, human rights, and public safety.

The current law for serious injury by dangerous driving is a maximum of 5 years. I think that when this is caused by a drink and/or drug driver, the sentence should be made harsher, with an automatic disqualification for life to make our roads safer.

Found: date, been delivered through Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) budgets, allocated by the Ministry of Justice

Found: Letter dated 18 June 2025 from Sarah Sackman KC MP, Minister for Courts and Legal Services, Ministry of Justice

Found: Letter dated 2 June 2025 from Alex Davies-Jones MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice

Found: 22 May 2025 Dear Lord Foster, GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO THE SSRB ANNUAL REPORT 2025/26 The Ministry of Justice

Found: I am sure that you will be aware that the MoJ, for example, has done a lot of work on mediation.

Found: When you were looking at that, did you also look at putting money into the Ministry of Justice to make

Found: The Department told us that justice authorities (Ministry of Justice, Justice Directorate Scotland and

Found: (MoJ), the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (

Found: would be interesting to know what the Northern Ireland Office has been doing to work with the Ministry of Justice

Found: Ministry of Justice, HMCTS, CAFCASS, Ministry of Justice, and Department for Education Oral Evidence

Found: Despite this, DAPP referrals remained exceptionally low, and the Ministry of Justice went against its

Found: Therefore, CILEX urges the Ministry of Justice to review the current stance on legal aid provisions

Found: and awareness around domestic abuseWritten evidence submitted by Women’s Aid (IFC0029)  the Ministry of Justice

Found: , as part of its remit to ensure that local services protect and support children, but the Ministry of Justice

Found: One issue the Law Society has consistently raised with the Ministry of Justice is the lack of reliable

Found: Ministry of Justice.

Found: Against this backdrop the pausing of the Ministry of Justice pilot for early legal advice on private

Found: intersection between the Department for Education, His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service, The Ministry of Justice

Found: Cost per private family law court case3: £1890 1 ‘Family Mediation Voucher Scheme Analysis’, Ministry of Justice

Found: agencies such as Cafcass (the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service), the Ministry of Justice

Found: Following discussions with officials in the DWP and MoJ, Triple P has drawn up recommendations in order

Found: Recent figures from the Ministry of Justice show that over 100,000 children are trapped in family court

Found: in the following ten solutions: Out of court: (i) Provide early legal advice and information: The MOJ

Found: The Ministry of Justice in its Electronic Monitoring Strategy has defined electronic monitoring in England

Found: make to the Bill, these include amendments that have been agreed with Historic England , the Ministry of Justice

Found: think, for my colleagues, a very illuminating session with the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Justice

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions her Department has had the (a) Ministry of Justice, (b) Home Office, (c) ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government on improving information sharing between (i) prisons, (ii) the police, (iii) courts, (iv) social services, (v) local housing authorities and (vi) schools when a parent is sentenced to custody.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials at the Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) are working closely to deliver on the government’s manifesto commitment to identify children affected by parental imprisonment so as to ensure they get the support they need to achieve and thrive.

In April 2025 a Ministerial roundtable meeting brought together those with lived experience of parental imprisonment, expertise on local authority family support, safeguarding, prisons, housing, social work, courts and schools.

A cross-government workshop in June 2025 brought together officials from several other government departments. Officials from both the DfE and MoJ have visited local authorities, met with children and their families in the community, with parents and social workers in prisons, and participated in several focus groups.

The department will continue to engage external stakeholders with a broad range of expertise to help shape our policy to better identify and support children affected by parental imprisonment.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2024 to Question 16525 on Guardianship and Parents: Prisoners, what recent progress her Department has made with the Ministry of Justice to effectively identify children of prisoners.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials at the Department for Education (DfE) and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) continue to work closely together to deliver on our manifesto commitment to identify children affected by parental imprisonment and ensure they get the support they need to thrive.

We recognise that our approach to identification must be a sensitive one and link to an informed, consistent and sustainable nationwide support offer.

Our departments have engaged a broad range of external stakeholders with a variety of expertise to help inform our policy development and will continue to do so as our work on this commitment progresses.

In April 2025 DfE and MoJ Ministers co-chaired a roundtable meeting and brought together those with lived experience of parental imprisonment, expertise on local authority family support, safeguarding, prisons, housing, social work, courts and schools.

A cross-government workshop in June 2025 gathered officials from a range of government departments.

Officials from both DfE and MoJ have also visited local authorities, met with children and their families in the community, with parents and social workers in prisons, and participated in several focus groups.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on introducing a formal duty to the criminal justice system to notify (a) schools and (b) local safeguarding boards when the parent of a child aged 18 or under is imprisoned.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The Department for Education and the Ministry of Justice are working closely to deliver our joint manifesto commitment to identify children affected by parental imprisonment and ensure they get the support they need to thrive. We understand the importance of driving action on this important agenda and we are working with a wide range of stakeholders, including people with lived experience, schools and those with expertise in safeguarding, to ensure we take a child-centred, trauma-informed and age-appropriate approach.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the length of prison sentences for people convicted of offences in connection with paedophile rings.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Home Office Ministers have regular discussions with their counterparts across Government, including the Ministry of Justice, on measures to tackle the heinous crime of child sexual abuse and exploitation and ensure perpetrators face the full force of the law.

Through the Crime and Policing Bill, the Government is legislating to make grooming a statutory aggravating factor in the sentencing of child sexual offences. This will include (but is not limited to) offences committed by individuals involved in grooming gangs.

Where a sentencing court concludes that a child sex offence was involved or was facilitated by grooming behaviour, it will be obliged to treat this as an aggravating factor, for which a more substantial penalty is accessible.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department issues to schools on identifying and supporting children whose parents are in custody; whether there is any additional guidance when no formal notification is received from other agencies.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The government has a key mission to break down the barriers to opportunity for every child, which is why we are committed to identifying children affected by parental imprisonment and ensuring they get the community support they need to thrive.

This government recognises the impact that a parent going to prison could have on a child’s learning, behaviour, mental health and wellbeing. We also recognise that support should be based on children's individual needs, which may change over time.

The department sets out in the ‘Keeping children safe in education’ statutory guidance for schools and colleges that staff should consider the additional needs of children with a family member or parent in prison. The guidance highlights the risk of poor outcomes including poverty, stigma, isolation and poor mental health.

Parental imprisonment is a sensitive issue, and officials from both the Department for Education and the Ministry of Justice are working with a wide range of stakeholders, including people with lived experience, to ensure that any future guidance issued sets out a child-centred, trauma-informed and age-appropriate approach. Exact details of how this will work in practice will be confirmed in due course.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made on establishing Young Futures Hubs.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials and Ministers from seven government departments (Department for Education, Home Office, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Department for Health and Social Care) have been working together, using evidence of what works, to start to shape Young Futures Hubs.

To roll-out Young Futures Hubs, building on the success of existing infrastructure and provision, the government will establish a number of early adopter hubs, the locations of which will be determined by where they will have the most impact. This will inform the longer term development of the programme, including how quickly we move to a greater number of hubs and where they may be located. The government will set out more details on timelines and locations in due course.

Young Futures Hubs are just one part of delivering support within a much wider youth landscape and they will work closely with core services and wider initiatives spanning youth, education, employment, social care, mental health, youth justice and policing. The government is developing a National Youth Strategy to set out a new long term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions is she having with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on (a) the consultation on a new National Youth Strategy and (b) the implications of the strategy for Young Futures Hubs.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials and Ministers from seven government departments (Department for Education, Home Office, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Department for Health and Social Care) have been working together, using evidence of what works, to start to shape Young Futures Hubs.

To roll-out Young Futures Hubs, building on the success of existing infrastructure and provision, the government will establish a number of early adopter hubs, the locations of which will be determined by where they will have the most impact. This will inform the longer term development of the programme, including how quickly we move to a greater number of hubs and where they may be located. The government will set out more details on timelines and locations in due course.

Young Futures Hubs are just one part of delivering support within a much wider youth landscape and they will work closely with core services and wider initiatives spanning youth, education, employment, social care, mental health, youth justice and policing. The government is developing a National Youth Strategy to set out a new long term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to identify early adopter areas for Young Future Hubs; and what her planned timetable is for launching these.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials and Ministers from seven government departments (Department for Education, Home Office, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Department for Health and Social Care) have been working together, using evidence of what works, to start to shape Young Futures Hubs.

To roll-out Young Futures Hubs, building on the success of existing infrastructure and provision, the government will establish a number of early adopter hubs, the locations of which will be determined by where they will have the most impact. This will inform the longer term development of the programme, including how quickly we move to a greater number of hubs and where they may be located. The government will set out more details on timelines and locations in due course.

Young Futures Hubs are just one part of delivering support within a much wider youth landscape and they will work closely with core services and wider initiatives spanning youth, education, employment, social care, mental health, youth justice and policing. The government is developing a National Youth Strategy to set out a new long term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions she is having with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on the role of Young Futures Hubs in the prevention of serious youth violence.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

Officials and Ministers from seven government departments (Department for Education, Home Office, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Department for Health and Social Care) have been working together, using evidence of what works, to start to shape Young Futures Hubs.

To roll-out Young Futures Hubs, building on the success of existing infrastructure and provision, the government will establish a number of early adopter hubs, the locations of which will be determined by where they will have the most impact. This will inform the longer term development of the programme, including how quickly we move to a greater number of hubs and where they may be located. The government will set out more details on timelines and locations in due course.

Young Futures Hubs are just one part of delivering support within a much wider youth landscape and they will work closely with core services and wider initiatives spanning youth, education, employment, social care, mental health, youth justice and policing. The government is developing a National Youth Strategy to set out a new long term vision for young people and an action plan for delivering this.

Found: Estimates day: The spending of the Ministry of Justice

Found: current purposes Net resources authorised for capital purposes Net Cash Requirement (£) (£) (£) Ministry of Justice

Found: Pension and all other provisions and other non-cash items.20 Ministry of Justice Estimate Net resources

Found: or agency: Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) Other departments or agencies: Ministry of Justice

Found: section 2 of the Suicide Act, engages article 8 (Pretty v United Kingdom and R (Nicklinson) v Ministry of Justice

Found: ADULTS (END OF LIFE) BILL Memorandum from the Department of Health and Social Care and Ministry of Justice

Found: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has been working closely with the Ministry of Justice

Found: detention rates, limited access to early intervention and talking therapies, overrepresentation in Ministry of Justice

Found: (MoJ) and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Found: This memorandum has been prepared by the Home Office , Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Defence, and

Found: make to the Bill, these include amendments that have been agreed with Historic England , the Ministry of Justice

Found: Ireland Wales MOJ MOD DWP Scotland HO MHCLG DHSC % change Main Estimates: Government spending plans

Found: For instance, the Ministry of Justice takes a risk-based approach to oversight and assurance of its

Found: For instance, the Ministry of Justice takes a risk-based approach to oversight and assurance of its

Found: For example, in 2017 the Ministry of Justice identified that it had set some court and tribunal fees

Found: For example, in 2017 the Ministry of Justice identified that it had set some court and tribunal fees

Found: Health economic report Gillian Merron 05/03/2025 Imkaan, The Suzy Lamplugh Trust, King's College, HO, MoJ

Found: td>

Found: Transport Department for Transport 29/01/2025 Services prov by OGD DG Corporate Delivery Group MINISTRY OF JUSTICE

Found: govuk-table__cell">DG Corporate Delivery Group

Found: Leadership Group Leeds, UK Train Standard 253.8 75.05 N/A 328.5 Naomi Mallick 2025-03-12 2025-02-13 MoJ

Found: Hollow Sections UK Yes 0.28 296 All Wire UK Yes 0.35 1888 All Sections and Shapes UK Yes 0.2 789 All MOJ

Found: commonly referred to as rebar, whether in rod, coils, or products suitable for mesh. 80 96000 2025 2027 MOJ

Found: Ministry of Justice Crackdown on ‘gagging orders’ to protect victims’ ability to access support - GOV.UK

Found: Society of England and Wales has worked closely with the British Embassy in Tokyo, the UK’s Ministry of Justice

Found: , including Awaab’s Law and Electrical Safety Standards regulations and joint work with the Ministry of Justice

Found: being laid, we have set out in our Written Ministerial Statement how we are working with the Ministry of Justice

Found: The Ministry of Justice is also consulting on the regulation of the debt enforcement sector (private

Found: To boost productivity and support business, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is exploring targeted reforms

Found: The Parole Board is a non-Departmental Public Body sponsored by the MOJ.

Found: The Youth Justice Board (YJB) is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Ministry of Justice

Found: BoardThe Youth Justice Board (YJB) is an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Ministry of Justice

Found: Leadership Group Leeds, UK Train Standard 253.8 75.05 N/A 328.5 Naomi Mallick 2025-03-12 2025-02-13 MoJ

Found: Office document, PDF, et.)ResponseThe YJB uses the Microsoft infrastructure provided by the Ministry of Justice

Found: Committee (FARAC) which is a sub-committee of the BoardICT procurement activity is supported by Ministry of Justice

Found: systems.ResponseQuestion 1 - The YJB does not produce reoffending data, this is done by the Ministry of Justice

Found: of information act.This portion of the YJB publication uses data provided to the YJB by the Ministry of Justice

Found: a result, we do not hold the information requested, however, you may wish to enquire if the Ministry of Justice

Found: You can contact the MoJ here data.access@justice.gov.uk.OFFICIALOFFICIALOFFICIALOFFICIALOFFICIALPage

Found: The Youth Justice Board no longer awards its own contracts but sources services via the Ministry of Justice

Found: given regarding custodial sentences, we have used 2023/24.Reoffending data is compiled by the Ministry of Justice

Found: We have been engaging with HMCTS and the Ministry of Justice and will be conducting a Justice Impact

Found: We have been engaging with HMCTS and the Ministry of Justice to complete a Justice Impact Test ahead

Found: Data capture: government and its relevant departments (specifically DHSC, MoJ, DfE and DWP) need to

Found: Assessment 9.9.1 The Justice Impact Assessment summarises the outcome of engagement with the Ministry of Justice