Crown Prosecution Service: Racial Bias

Lord Woodley Excerpts

Thursday 25th April 2024 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Woodley]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of racial bias in Crown Prosecution Service charging decisions.

[Lord Woodley (Lab)]

My Lords, as a very happy Evertonian, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

[Lord Roborough (Con)]

My Lords, we know that some ethnic groups are overrepresented in the criminal justice system, and we need to understand why so we can address this. The Crown Prosecution Service commissioned research which found that outcomes of CPS decision-making differ by ethnicity. However, the research did not identify the reasons for this, so the CPS has proactively commissioned further work to explore the impact of other contributing factors, to address this important issue.

[Lord Woodley (Lab)]

My Lords, the noble and learned Lord, Lord Bellamy, as the Minister knows, told me from the Dispatch Box that

“race plays no part in individual charging decisions”.”.—[Official Report, 19/10/23; col. 295.]

However, the Crown Prosecution Service itself, as has just been said, in its report last year,

“found evidence of disproportionality in relation to ethnicity in the outcomes of our decision-making”,

and that,

“ethnic minority defendants are significantly more likely to be charged for a comparable offence than White British defendants”.

Can the Minister explain why?

[Lord Roborough (Con)]

My Lords, as we all know, individuals commit crimes, and it is up to us to ensure that they are treated fairly and equally. The Lammy Review, published in 2017, found no issues with the outcomes of CPS charging decisions. Given the level of ethnic disparity across the CJS and the fact that the Lammy Review was undertaken some time ago, the CPS commissioned further independent academic research. The findings of this research, while challenging for the CPS, are an important step in ensuring that the CJS is fair and functioning for all sections of society. I am pleased that further work is being undertaken to provide a deeper understanding of this issue and to find solutions as to how best the system can address it. That work will help to identify any issue with processes, and we expect it to be completed in the last part of 2024.