Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, how many cases at Crown Courts have been discontinued in the last 12 months as a result of the lack of a prosecuting barrister.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of cases dropped/discontinued at the Crown Court due to the lack of a prosecuting barrister. This information could only be obtained by an examination of CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.