Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he is taking steps to publish claimant data for County Court Judgments.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Ministry of Justice recently held a consultation about including claimant names on the Register of Judgments, Orders and Fines (the Register). We intend to publish a response to that consultation in due course. That response will set out whether the Government intends to bring forward legislation to allow for the publication of claimant names on the Register.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of sentences for domestic homicides were calculated from the starting point of (a) 15 years, (b) 25 years, (c) 30 years and (d) a whole life tariff in each of the last three years.
Answered by Gareth Bacon - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
All murder convictions must result in a life sentence. When a life sentence is imposed, the Judge will calculate the minimum term by selecting the appropriate starting point as set out in legislation – namely Schedule 21 of the Sentencing Act 2020. When sentencing adult offenders, the starting points are 15, 25, 30 years or a whole life order.
The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of prosecutions, convictions, and sentences across various offences in the Outcomes by Offence data tool. Please filter by the offence ‘murder’ in the sentence outcomes tab for details on the number of offenders sentenced for murder.
Statistical data on starting points for murder sentences, including domestic homicides, is not collected. The information may be held on individual court records, however interrogating these would incur disproportionate costs.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of sentences for murder were calculated from the starting point of (a) 15 years, (b) 25 years, (c) 30 years and (d) a whole life tariff in each of the last three years.
Answered by Gareth Bacon - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
All murder convictions must result in a life sentence. When a life sentence is imposed, the Judge will calculate the minimum term by selecting the appropriate starting point as set out in legislation – namely Schedule 21 of the Sentencing Act 2020. When sentencing adult offenders, the starting points are 15, 25, 30 years or a whole life order.
The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of prosecutions, convictions, and sentences across various offences in the Outcomes by Offence data tool. Please filter by the offence ‘murder’ in the sentence outcomes tab for details on the number of offenders sentenced for murder.
Statistical data on starting points for murder sentences, including domestic homicides, is not collected. The information may be held on individual court records, however interrogating these would incur disproportionate costs.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of domestic homicide cases used the partial defences of diminished responsibility and loss of control in each of the last 10 years for which data is available.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions involving manslaughter and manslaughter due to diminished responsibility in the “Outcomes by Offence” tool as part of the Criminal Justice System Statistics publication.
In the “Outcomes by Offences” pivot tool, select the `Prosecutions and Convictions’ page, and then select “00405” (manslaughter due to diminished responsibility) and “00401” (manslaughter) from the HO offence code filter. A defendant, committed by the magistrates’ court to the Crown Court, may not complete both court processes in the same year. Each stage would therefore be counted by the particular court in the year where those proceedings took place or completed, meaning that in any given year, convictions may exceed prosecutions and sentences may not equate to the number of convictions. In addition, defendants who appear before both courts may also be convicted of a different offence at the Crown Court to that counted during proceedings in the magistrates’ court, where the offence may have changed after committal to the Crown Court.
The Ministry of Justice does not collate information separately on whether a prosecution also concerns one of domestic homicide. Data is unavailable on the partial defence of loss of control.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to provide for first party and third party personal injury insurance fraud to be treated the same way by the courts.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Government is committed to reducing the number of fraudulent personal injury claims. To this end, we are considering what specific reforms might be appropriate.
As announced last year, we are working with stakeholders in the industry to tighten the medical evidence process so that only evidence from accredited experts can be considered, and the costs for those reports can be fixed. This will mean people can no longer profit from exaggerated or fraudulent compensation claims but victims with genuine cases can still get the help they deserve. We are introducing these reforms later in the year. We are also working to secure better data on motor accident cases, including the number of fraudulent cases.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will adopt the Law Commission's proposal in its 12th programme of law reform on fraud by victims of personal injury.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Government is committed to reducing the number of fraudulent personal injury claims. To this end, it is considering what specific reforms might be appropriate, including whether the Law Commission should be asked to consider the issue.
As announced last year, we are working with stakeholders in the industry to tighten the medical evidence process so that only evidence from accredited experts can be considered, and the costs for those reports can be fixed. This will mean people can no longer profit from exaggerated or fraudulent compensation claims but victims with genuine cases can still get the help they deserve. We are introducing these reforms later in the year. We are also working to secure better data on motor accident cases, including the number of fraudulent cases.
Asked by: Robert Buckland (Conservative - South Swindon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress his Department has made on potential measures to discourage personal injury claimants from exaggerating or fabricating losses over and above genuine elements; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Shailesh Vara
The Government is committed to reducing the number of fraudulent personal injury claims. To this end, it is considering what specific reforms might be appropriate, including whether the Law Commission should be asked to consider the issue.
As announced last year, we are working with stakeholders in the industry to tighten the medical evidence process so that only evidence from accredited experts can be considered, and the costs for those reports can be fixed. This will mean people can no longer profit from exaggerated or fraudulent compensation claims but victims with genuine cases can still get the help they deserve. We are introducing these reforms later in the year. We are also working to secure better data on motor accident cases, including the number of fraudulent cases.