Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, with reference to the additional funding for the Crown Prosecution Service announced in August 2019, what criteria he will use to decide how to distribute that funding across that Service.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The CPS will face additional demand, following the Government’s investment in 20,000 additional police officers, and the process changes required to improve performance on statutory disclosure obligations. As always the CPS will distribute funding to ensure it has the right levels of resource with the right skills and in the right geographical locations to handle future caseload volumes.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, what plans he has for the distribution of the additional funding for the Crown Prosecution Service announced in August 2019.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The Spending Round settlement for CPS for 2020-21 included £80m of additional funding.
This additional funding will enable the CPS to:
Meet the increased demand pressures following the government’s investment in additional police resource
Deliver improved performance in meeting statutory disclosure obligations and
Fund any recommended changes arising from the current review of Bar fees
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the number of people brought to trial for all categories of offences by the Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2010.
Answered by Michael Ellis
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the number of defendants subject to a trial hearing and collates the data collected in financial years.
The table below shows the number of defendants subject to a trial hearing during each year from 2010-11 to 2018-19 in the magistrates’ courts and the Crown Court.
Trial Defendants | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
Crown Court (CC) | 19177 | 18710 | 18133 | 16601 | 17356 | 17950 | 17636 | 16005 | 13597 |
Magistrates' Court (MC) | 62281 | 58460 | 53902 | 54200 | 54580 | 60309 | 55598 | 48522 | 42322 |
National | 81458 | 77170 | 72035 | 70801 | 71936 | 78259 | 73234 | 64527 | 55919 |
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, what the change has been in the level of funding allocated to the Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2009.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The change in the level of funding allocated to the Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2009 has been as follows:
CPS Funding | ||||||||||
| 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018* |
| £m | £m | £m | £m | £m | £m | £m | £m | £m | £m |
Total CPS funding | 648 | 689.2 | 642.9 | 591.15 | 562.6 | 551.6 | 508.55 | 488.19 | 498.6 | 528 |
Change in funding | -0.4 | 41.2 | -46.3 | -51.75 | -28.55 | -11 | -43.05 | -20.36 | 10.41 | 29.4 |
% change | 0% | 6% | -7% | -8% | -5% | -2% | -8% | -4% | 2% | 6% |
* Accounts not yet subject to audit
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, how many cases have been passed to the CPS by the police which the CPS has decided not to pursue (a) in each region and (b) at CPS Direct in each year since 2009.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the number of suspects (not cases) referred to prosecutors for a pre-charge decision and the number of decisions not to prosecute suspects following a charging decision.
The tables at Annex 1 show the outcome of referrals from the police for a pre charge decision. Data is provided for each one of the CPS’ regional Areas from 2009/10 to 2017/18. This dataset incorporates all decisions taken by CPS Direct over this period.
The outcome of a decision can be one of the following:
Charge; Prosecutors must be satisfied there is enough evidence to provide a "realistic prospect of conviction" against each defendant and that the prosecution is in the public interest.
Take no further action for either evidential or public interest reasons;
Recommend that an out of court disposal is appropriate, such as a caution, conditional caution or that the offence is taken into consideration with other charges;
Administratively Finalise in cases where an early investigative advice has been sought by the police or, there is insufficient evidence to bring a charge at first referral, the police have been asked to complete an action plan and no further evidence is forthcoming. These cases may be reopened, if at a later date, new material is provided to the prosecution enabling a charging decision to be made; and
Other, when the result of the charging decision is not known or has not been given for that suspect.
The Charging and No Further Action (NFA) rates will vary from Area to Area depending upon the practice of local police forces to NFA weak cases without reference to the CPS. The Administratively Finalised rate is largely determined by the number of cases referred to the CPS for early investigative advice. In recent years, there has been a rise in the proportion of cases administratively finalised following an increased use of early investigative advice in rape cases.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2019 to Question 213932 on Crown Prosecution Service: West Midlands, what the change has been in the caseload for the Crown Prosecution Service for each principal offence category in each year from 2010.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the volumes of completed prosecutions, or caseload, as a count of the number of defendants and collates the data collected in financial years. At the conclusion of each prosecution case the defendant is allocated one of 12 Principal Offence Categories that indicates the most serious offence with which the defendant is charged at the time of finalisation.
The tables in Annex 1 show the number of finalised prosecution outcomes in the CPS nationally for each Principal Offence Category, during each year from 2010-11 to 2017-18, and the year on year change in both volume and percent.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 11 of February 2019 to Question 217439 on Crown Prosecution Service: West Midlands, how many minor motoring cases there were in England and Wales in each year since 2010.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of prosecuted defendants by twelve Principal Offence Categories, including the category of Motoring Offences.
The table below shows the number of summary-only prosecutions at magistrates’ courts allocated to the Motoring Offences category during each available year from 2010-11 to 2017-18 and the change in both volume and percent.
Year | Motoring Prosecution Caseload | Volume Change | % Change |
2010-2011 | 287,677 | - | - |
2011-2012 | 255,270 | -32,407 | -11.3% |
2012-2013 | 224,832 | -30,438 | -11.9% |
2013-2014 | 166,028 | -58,804 | -26.2% |
2014-2015 | 107,698 | -58,330 | -35.1% |
2015-2016 | 107,227 | -471 | -0.4% |
2016-2017 | 100,058 | -7,169 | -6.7% |
2017-2018 | 94,738 | -5,320 | -5.3% |
Data Source: CPS Management Information System | |||
It is not possible to disaggregate figures to show separately the volume and outcome of proceedings for individual offences within the Motoring Offences category.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, how many staff the Crown Prosecution Service employed (a) in each region and (b) at CPS Direct in each year from 2010.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The number of staff employed by the Crown Prosecution Service in each Region and in CPS Direct in each year from 2010 (As at 31 December of each year) is listed in the table below:
CPS Region | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
Central Casework | 620 | 472 | 592 | 564 | 662 | 633 | 661 | 704 | 707 |
CPS Direct | 155 | 135 | 171 | 302 | 286 | 260 | 244 | 210 | 183 |
CPS Headquarters | 482 | 413 | 443 | 434 | 414 | 432 | 390 | 444 | 500 |
Cymru Wales | 432 | 403 | 381 | 321 | 296 | 275 | 284 | 278 | 275 |
East Midlands | 526 | 477 | 426 | 355 | 330 | 310 | 308 | 316 | 311 |
Eastern | 408 | 385 | 366 | 325 | 284 | 257 | 251 | 254 | 266 |
London | 1203 | 1233 | 1047 | 955 | 937 | 876 | 924 | - | - |
London North | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 463 | 463 |
London South | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 474 | 466 |
Merseyside & Cheshire | 358 | 338 | 282 | 233 | 223 | 205 | 217 | 224 | 240 |
North East | 422 | 391 | 368 | 320 | 293 | 256 | 270 | 264 | 260 |
North West Group | 769 | 687 | 688 | 614 | 560 | 510 | 516 | 494 | 458 |
South East | 404 | 373 | 370 | 291 | 287 | 242 | 246 | 250 | 250 |
South West | 338 | 313 | 281 | 256 | 219 | 212 | 210 | 223 | 217 |
Thames & Chiltern | 430 | 396 | 412 | 342 | 332 | 282 | 271 | 288 | 275 |
Wessex | 348 | 330 | 317 | 264 | 265 | 233 | 231 | 221 | 229 |
West Midlands Group | 775 | 698 | 617 | 520 | 489 | 457 | 449 | 435 | 424 |
Yorkshire & Humberside Group | 674 | 628 | 612 | 537 | 507 | 482 | 482 | 447 | 422 |
Total | 8344 | 7672 | 7373 | 6633 | 6384 | 5922 | 5954 | 5989 | 5946 |
*Note: Following an organisational restructure in 2011 some CPS commands were changed from Groups to single Areas under the leadership of a single Chief Crown Prosecutor.
Data Source: Trent HR Database February 2019.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 11 of February 2019 to Question 217439 on Crown Prosecution Service: West Midlands, for each Principle Offence type, what estimate he has made of the number of cases pursued by the Crown Prosecution Service which did not result in a trial in (a) England and (b) the West Midlands in each year since 2010; and if he will publish the reasons for each of those cases not resulting in a trial.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The number of cases which did not result in a trial can be broken down into a number of categories. Guilty pleas and Proved in Absence prosecutions result in a conviction while Dropped and Administratively Finalised prosecutions result in a non-conviction. The four tables in Annex A provide the Guilty pleas and Proved in Absence prosecutions together with the Dropped and Administratively Finalised prosecutions for both England and CPS West Midlands.
The definition for each category of prosecution is provided in the notes in Annex A. The notes provide an explanation as to why these case types did not proceed to trial.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 11 of February 2019 to Question 217439 on Crown Prosecution Service: West Midlands and with reference to the finding that there was a 67 percent reduction in the number of minor motoring cases in that area with a similar fall reflected across England, how many minor motoring cases there were in (a) the West Midlands and (b) England in each year since 2010.
Answered by Robert Buckland
The tables below show the number of finalised prosecution outcomes with the Principal Offence Category of Motoring and the Mode of Trial recorded as Summary-Only during each year from 2010-11 to 2017-18 in the West Midlands CPS Area and in England.
During the period in question, the percentage reduction in caseload was 67.4% in the West Midlands and 67.1% in England.
| 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 |
West Midlands | 28,770 | 24,720 | 24,039 | 19,202 | 9,377 | 10,833 | 11,149 | 9,392 |
England | 269,129 | 239,581 | 208,235 | 150,565 | 94,424 | 97,441 | 93,031 | 88,469 |