Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, whether the law officers plans to seek to negotiate reforms of the European Convention of Human Rights at Council of Europe level.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
As the Prime Minister has made clear, the United Kingdom will not withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights. To leave would be entirely contrary to this country’s national interest.
We need to work with our friends and partners in Europe to tackle all our major issues from irregular migration to combatting climate change. The solutions to these problems will not be met by isolating ourselves from our allies. But the status quo is not an option, and we are looking at various options to modernise our approach both domestically and internationally to the Convention.
As Chief Legal Advisors to Government, any advice that might be given by the Law Officers would be protected by the Law Officers’ Convention.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, whether the Attorney General held discussions with the (a) CPS and (b) Director of Public Prosecutions on the available evidence prior to the decision not to proceed with prosecution in the case on Chinese espionage.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
Decisions to prosecute are, rightly, made independently of Government by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Consent was given by my predecessor on 3 April 2024. Following that date, no Law Officer intervened in the case at any stage.
Where a case can no longer proceed because of evidential reasons, as in this case, then the requirement is that the CPS informs the Attorney General of the decision as soon as it is taken.
The decision to offer no evidence was a decision made by the CPS, without any political influence, by the Attorney General or me, as the CPS has already confirmed.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, if she will publish legal advice provided to the Crown Prosecution Service on the case relating to the alleged breach of Official Secrets Act on behalf of China.
Answered by Ellie Reeves - Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
Decisions to prosecute are, rightly, made independently of Government by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Consent was given by my predecessor on 3 April 2024. Following that date, no Law Officer intervened in the case at any stage.
Where a case can no longer proceed because of evidential reasons, as in this case, then the requirement is that the CPS informs the Attorney General of the decision as soon as it is taken.
The decision to offer no evidence was a decision made by the CPS, without any political influence, by the Attorney General or me, as the CPS has already confirmed.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, with reference to the Civil Service 2024/2025 External Expenditure on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, published on 30 May 2025, which suppliers were used to provide the Black History Talk.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Any expenditure on equality, diversity and inclusion is conducted in line with Civil Service policies. With reference to the specific spend listed within the Civil Service 2024/2025 External Expenditure on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, published on 30 May 2025, the one hour Black History Talk took place as part of Black History Month in October 2024 at a cost of £150. It was delivered by a law lecturer, who has worked for a number of UK/US universities and law schools.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2025 to Question 45656 on Government Departments: Legal Opinion, for what reason the latest guidance removed the wording that in presenting such assessments, it is important to ensure negligible or discounted risks are not given undue weight.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
It is evident that all professional advice should avoid placing undue emphasis on risks that are negligible.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, whether guidance has been issued by the (a) Law Officers and (b) Government Legal Service on the (i) Venice Commission and (ii) Rule of Law Checklist since July 2024.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
Since July 2024, no guidance has been issued in regard to the (i) Venice Commission or (ii) Rule of Law Checklist by the Law Officers or Government Legal Profession.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Solicitor General, with reference to the Civil Service 2024/2025 External Expenditure on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, published on 30 May 2025, which suppliers were used to provide the LGBTi internal conference.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The LGBTI conference was a Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) event, and the supplier used to provide venue services was Calder Conferences.
Calder Conferences offers venue solutions for meetings, conferences, and other events, and works with various government departments.
The CPS has a contract with Calder Conferences through the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) Framework for Travel and Venue Solutions. This framework allows CPS to access venues for meetings and conferences as needed.
The contract was signed in 2024 under the previous government for two years, with an option to extend for one additional year until February 2027, as is standard across government departments when contracting with conference suppliers. As standard, government contracts are routinely reviewed.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, what steps the Government is taking to increase the number of prosecutions for modern slavery.
Answered by Robert Buckland
We have the strongest legal framework in place including the Modern Slavery Act, which came into force in July 2015. The Law Officers are supporting the Prime Minister’s Taskforce on Modern Slavery, and the CPS continues to see a year on year increase in the numbers of prosecutions.