Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jamie Wallis and Eddie Hughes

Thursday 13th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dr Jamie Wallis (Bridgend) (Con)]

7. What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the CPS in prosecuting offences against emergency workers.

[Eddie Hughes (Walsall North) (Con)]

8. What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the CPS in prosecuting offences against emergency workers.

[The Solicitor General (Michael Ellis)]

The CPS takes offences against emergency service personnel extremely seriously. Between November 2018 and November 2019, the first year of the offence coming into effect, almost 20,000 offences were charged under the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018, three quarters of which were assaults by beating; there were 19,771 offences against emergency workers, including 5,362 common assaults. In January, the CPS published a joint agreement with the National Police Chiefs’ Council, NHS England, the National Fire Chiefs Council and Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service. This shared understanding, and it will ensure that cases continue to be prosecuted and investigated effectively.