Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, with reference to the injunction granted by the Family Division on 22 June 2001 in respect of Jon Venables and Robert Thompson, what costs were incurred by his and other government departments in respect of matters relating to that injunction, including any amounts paid by way of the fees of any counsel and other disbursements.

This question refers to costs incurred over a considerable period of time. The Government Legal Department (‘GLD’) has carried out a reasonable and proportionate interrogation of its digital records and has ascertained that the following costs have been incurred (all figures given exclude VAT):

(1) On matters relating to applications to vary the Injunction:

• The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) incurred £16,767.40 on time spent by GLD, plus £19,990.01 on counsel’s fees and other disbursements.
• The Ministry of Justice incurred £432.00 on time spent by GLD on matters relating to the current application to vary the Injunction.

(2) On matters relating to breaches of the Injunction:

• AGO incurred £33,620.90 on time spent by GLD, plus £30,240.36 on counsel’s fees and other disbursements.

(3) On matters relating to the application of the Secretary of State for Justice in 2012 to vary the Injunction:

• The Ministry of Justice incurred £2,479.10 on time spent by GLD, plus £8,546.40 on counsel’s fees and other disbursements.

These figures do not include any internal costs incurred by individual government departments in terms of time spent by their officials in matters relating to the Injunction.