Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what range of sentences have been received by people who have been prosecuted for non-payment of the BBC licence fee within the past five years.

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

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on TV licence evasions at criminal courts in England and Wales be in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

The number of prosecutions for TV licence evasion in the past five years and the percentage of which are women can be found in the following table:

Table 1: The number of prosecutions for TV license evasion, at criminal courts, between year ending June 2020 and year ending June 2024, in England and Wales (1,2,3,4,5,6)

Source: Court Proceedings Database

The sentence outcomes for TV licence evasion in the past five years can be found in the following table:

Table 2: The sentence outcomes for TV license evasion, at criminal courts, between Year ending June 2020 and year ending June 2024, in England and Wales (1,2,3,4)

Source: Court Proceedings Database

Notes:

1. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

2. These figures are presented on a principal offence basis - i.e. reporting information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt with for. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

3. These figures are presented on a principal disposal basis - i.e. reporting the most severe sentence issued for the offence.

4. Only rows with non-zero values within the specified time period will appear in the table.

5. Demographic information, such as a defendant's age, sex, ethnicity, etc. can be sparsely recorded for summary offences. This is because prosecutions for summary offences do not always require an individual to physically attend court (e.g., Single Justice Procedure cases) where this information would typically be recorded. Therefore, if the information held by police or other prosecutors is incomplete, demographic information may not be captured within the court data.

6. The total number of prosecutions includes cases where gender is not recorded

7. The female prosecution rate is based on the total number of prosecutions where gender is recorded

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people in the past five years have been prosecuted for non-payment of the BBC licence fee; and what percentage of these people were women.

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

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on TV licence evasions at criminal courts in England and Wales be in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

The number of prosecutions for TV licence evasion in the past five years and the percentage of which are women can be found in the following table:

Table 1: The number of prosecutions for TV license evasion, at criminal courts, between year ending June 2020 and year ending June 2024, in England and Wales (1,2,3,4,5,6)

Source: Court Proceedings Database

The sentence outcomes for TV licence evasion in the past five years can be found in the following table:

Table 2: The sentence outcomes for TV license evasion, at criminal courts, between Year ending June 2020 and year ending June 2024, in England and Wales (1,2,3,4)

Source: Court Proceedings Database

Notes:

1. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

2. These figures are presented on a principal offence basis - i.e. reporting information relating to the most serious offence that a defendant was dealt with for. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.

3. These figures are presented on a principal disposal basis - i.e. reporting the most severe sentence issued for the offence.

4. Only rows with non-zero values within the specified time period will appear in the table.

5. Demographic information, such as a defendant's age, sex, ethnicity, etc. can be sparsely recorded for summary offences. This is because prosecutions for summary offences do not always require an individual to physically attend court (e.g., Single Justice Procedure cases) where this information would typically be recorded. Therefore, if the information held by police or other prosecutors is incomplete, demographic information may not be captured within the court data.

6. The total number of prosecutions includes cases where gender is not recorded

7. The female prosecution rate is based on the total number of prosecutions where gender is recorded

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to encourage young children to participate in sports, and (2) to emphasise the benefits of physical activity.

Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Government puts children and young people at the heart of our priorities. This includes breaking down barriers to opportunity for every child to realise the benefits of and access high-quality sport and physical activity, especially those who are less likely to be active.

The independent, expert-led review of the school curriculum will ensure that all children can engage with a broad range of subjects, including PE and sport.

The Government recently announced £100 million additional funding for the UK-wide Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme which funds new and upgraded pitches, facilities, and equipment. Funding will ensure that sites can provide a more inclusive and sustainable offer throughout the year for local communities, including for children and young people.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 27 March (HL5777), whether they will now answer the question put; namely, how many (1) charities, (2) campaign organisations, and (3) survivors, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology has met regarding adult non-consensual intimate image abuse since 5 July 2024; and how many such meetings they have held in total and on which dates they have taken place.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

Ministers and officials have regular meetings with a range of stakeholders about issues related to online harms, including adult non-consensual intimate image abuse.

Ministerial meetings and engagements are published through quarterly transparency reports on GOV.UK.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that young girls continue to engage in sport from primary school to senior school.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)

The government is committed to breaking down barriers to accessing sport and physical activity for children and young people, including girls. We set out our intention to support more children to be active by protecting time for physical education (PE) in schools and working across government to support the role grassroots clubs play in expanding access to sport and physical activity.

The School Games Mark, funded by the government and managed by the Youth Sport Trust, has introduced mandatory equality criteria for PE, school sport and physical activity participation for the 2024/25 academic year. Schools can review their provision and test whether they are overcoming barriers girls and boys may face and ensure they are listening to the voice of the pupils as part of their planning and delivery. Best practice from the School Games Mark will be shared with all schools to enhance girls' equal access to sport.

Schools are also supported to increase girls’ engagement in sport through programmes delivered by sector organisations, such as the Football Association’s ‘Barclays Girls’ Football School Partnerships programme and Sport England’s online ‘Studio You’ programme.

Found: Richmond; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord McNally; Lord Mitchell; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Primrose Hill; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord McNally; Lord Mitchell; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Primrose Hill; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord McNally; Lord Mitchell; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Lord Holmes of Richmond; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord McNally; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Lord Holmes of Richmond; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord McNally; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Primrose Hill; Lord Holmes of Richmond; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Lord Bishop of Leeds; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Primrose Hill; Lord Holmes of Richmond; Lord Knight of Weymouth; The Lord Bishop of Leeds; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: Baroness Fleet; Baroness Healy of Primrose Hill; The Bishop of Leeds; Lord Mitchell; Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: It was agreed, but only after it had been amended (through amendments moved by Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: the person had a reasonable excuse for creating the purported intimate image.” 55A★_ Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge

Found: It was agreed, but only after it had been amended (through amendments moved by Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge