Oral Answers to Questions

Damien Moore Excerpts

Thursday 23rd May 2019 Commons Chamber

[The Solicitor General]

It is always a pleasure to hear from my hon. Friend, who is an excellent Chair of the Justice Committee. I wish Victoria and James every success on Sunday. He is absolutely right to highlight the fact that there are many elements to the legal profession. There is of course private work, as well as legal aid and the free service provided through the pro bono work that lawyers provide. We spend £1.6 billion every year on legal aid, and we are continuing to look at how we can best support people in need through legal aid.

[Damien Moore (Southport) (Con)]

4. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of CPS engagement with local communities on the judicial process.

[Eddie Hughes (Walsall North) (Con)]

8. What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of CPS engagement with local communities on the judicial process.

[The Solicitor General (Lucy Frazer)]

The Attorney General’s Office has regular engagement with the Crown Prosecution Service, and we know that the issue of community engagement is of key importance to the CPS. In May 2018, it launched its inclusion and community engagement strategy in addition to the existing consultation groups and scrutiny panels, all of which are pivotal in building trust with all communities in relation to CPS decisions.

[Damien Moore]

I welcome my hon. and learned Friend to her post. Can she give an example of community engagement in my local CPS area?

[The Solicitor General]

My hon. Friend’s constituency falls within the Merseyside and Cheshire CPS area, and the inclusion and community engagement manager there is Jennifer Friday. She manages an ambitious programme of community engagement that includes sessions in high schools and a community conversation with people with learning disabilities, and I commend her work. The local criminal justice board has set up a sub-group to focus on hate crime, which is chaired by the CPS and includes Sefton Council.