Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Mactaggart and Jeremy Wright

Thursday 2nd July 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Attorney General]

It is important to draw the distinction between the Human Rights Act and human rights. We are not in favour of the first; we are very much in favour of the second. As for the devolution consequences of any action we may take, the hon. Gentleman will have to be patient and see what proposals my right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor brings forward. I can assure him, however, that whatever they are, we will engage in proper consultation with the devolved Administrations.

[Fiona Mactaggart (Slough) (Lab)]

Are there any fundamental principles, as opposed to details and modernity, which conflict between Magna Carta and the Human Rights Act?

[The Attorney General]

The hon. Lady will recognise that Magna Carta was far from a perfect expression of human rights. That is why I say that things have moved on in the past 800 years, and we should welcome that. On the European convention on human rights, the Government have been very clear. We have no quarrel with the wording of the convention; our quarrel is with the way in which it has been interpreted by the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. That is the problem we seek to address.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Mactaggart and Jeremy Wright

Tuesday 10th February 2015 Commons Chamber

[Fiona Mactaggart (Slough) (Lab)]

10. What recent discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on the future of the Serious Fraud Office.

[The Attorney-General (Jeremy Wright)]

I meet the Home Secretary regularly to discuss issues of common interest. The UK anti-corruption plan, published in December, announced that the Cabinet Office will take forward a review of the enforcement response to bribery and corruption more broadly and will report to the inter-ministerial group on anti-corruption in June.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Fiona Mactaggart and Jeremy Wright

Tuesday 6th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Attorney-General]

Yes, I can give my hon. Friend that assurance. The custodial institutions he refers to are on the boundary between his constituency and mine—I know them well—and like me he represents people who work in the prison system. They are entitled to protection; in particular, they can make a victim impact statement, as can other victims of crime. In addition, it is possible—and I would encourage the use of these—for a prison community impact statement to be made. Prisons are unique communities and can be affected substantially by criminal offences, so it is important that sentencers take that into account when sentencing.

[Fiona Mactaggart (Slough) (Lab)]

We know that with the shortage of prison officers the number of assaults on individual officers has increased. Has the number of prosecutions for those assaults also increased?

[The Attorney-General]

The hon. Lady will understand that I cannot comment on particular prosecution decisions, but she will know that in my last job and this one I have made my views plain: I think it is important that where there is evidence Crown prosecutors prosecute in cases where prison officers are assaulted. Such assaults should never happen, of course, but we have tightened the protocols to make it clear that where they do so and evidence is present Crown prosecutors should proceed against those who assault prison officers, because those who work in our prison system are entitled to the full support of the law in what they do.