Oral Answers to Questions

Sally-Ann Hart Excerpts

Thursday 16th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

3. What steps the CPS is taking to improve the prosecution rate for hate crimes.

[Sally-Ann Hart (Hastings and Rye) (Con)]

8. What steps the CPS is taking to improve the prosecution rate for hate crimes.

[The Solicitor General (Michael Ellis)]

The CPS is committed to tackling hate crime, working closely with partners across government under the hate crime action plan. The CPS has trained its prosecutors, drawing on expertise and insight from key community groups, and has established national and local scrutiny panels to inform decision making. As a result, last year the number of convictions for hate crimes with a recorded sentence uplift increased to 73.6%, the highest rate yet.

--- Later in debate ---

[Sally-Ann Hart]

I thank my right hon. and learned Friend for his response. The internet has hugely positive values, but it can allow the spread of hate crime behind a veil of anonymity. What steps is his Department taking to ensure that crime online attracts and is subject to the same penalties in law as offline crime?

[The Solicitor General]

The proportion of hate crime convictions with an announced and recorded sentence uplift has increased from just 12.1% in 2014 to 73.6% now. My hon. Friend is right about online instances of hate crime, and the hate crime conviction rate has also increased in the past decade significantly. It now stands at 84%, but we are continuing to work on dealing with the issue of hate crime online.