Asked by: Baroness Morgan of Cotes (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when section 31 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 will come into force.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Appropriate protections for victims of harassment or stalking are vital. We are carefully considering implementation of section 31 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 to ensure data and safeguarding protections are built into the process. As part of this consideration, we have included a provision in the Data (Use and Access) Bill to ensure that section 31 extends UK-wide, given the nature of the UK’s data protection framework.
Asked by: Baroness Morgan of Cotes (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the Ministry of Justice plans to publish a consultation on sentencing for murders committed in domestic settings, in particular (1) consulting on increasing the tariff from 15 to 25 years, and (2) consulting on the perpetrator’s hands being treated as weapons.
Answered by Lord Bellamy
On Monday 27 November, the Government launched a public consultation on a minimum term starting point in sentencing for (i) murders preceded by controlling or coercive behaviour against the murder victim, and (ii) all murders committed using a knife or other weapon. The consultation will close on 4 March 2024. The consultation can be found here.
Asked by: Baroness Morgan of Cotes (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representations he has received from (a) the Burial and Cremation Advisory Group and (b) other stakeholders on the reuse of graves; and whether his Department plans to continue to review the matter of such reuse.
Answered by Phillip Lee
We continue to keep the issue of burial space under review and to maintain a dialogue about it with the Burial and Cremation Advisory Group - an expert group which meets twice yearly and is chaired by the Ministry of Justice - and other stakeholders.
In addition, as part of its 13th Programme of Law Reform, the Law Commission will be undertaking a project to consider the modernisation and streamlining of burial and cremation law, with a view to putting forward a legal framework for the future.