Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has provided guidance to the Independent Sentencing Review 2024 to 2025 on (a) when and (b) how evidence should be collected from third parties.

This Government has delivered on a manifesto commitment to bring sentencing up to date and ensure the framework is consistent, by launching an Independent Review of Sentencing on 22 October 2024.

The Review will be guided by the Terms of Reference published on 21 October 2024. In developing their recommendations, the independent Chair and panel will consider how to collect and publish evidence.

The Department has not provided guidance, and it will be up to the independent Review, with the expectation that views of a diverse range of stakeholders, including the public, will be important.

The Review has published an eight-week Call for Evidence to gather evidence from all those with an interest, closing early January 2025. The Review is estimated to run for 6 months and should submit its findings in full by Spring 2025. Following the publication of the report, and recommendations, the Government intends to respond to the Review.

The Ministry of Justice has allocated funding for the Independent Sentencing Review; it will be for the Review to consider how it meets its Terms of Reference, including if it wishes to commission primary research.