Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, how and on what basis the Crown Prosecution Service decides whether to prioritise the allocation of resources to its decision-making on criminal charges following conclusions of unlawful killing at an inquest or public inquiry; and whether there is additional consideration where the events in question occurred more than three years prior to the conclusion of the inquest or public inquiry.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) will consider whether there is any new evidence or information within the coroner's proceedings which may have an impact upon any previous CPS decision not to bring criminal charges against an individual(s) or organisation following a conclusion of unlawful killing at an inquest or public inquiry. Where it is found that a further investigation will need to be conducted by the police, and a fresh decision made by the CPS, the police and CPS should ensure the Coroner and bereaved family / next of kin are notified of the next steps to be taken.

The allocation of CPS resources to make decisions on criminal charges will be determined by the specific facts and circumstances of the individual case. The Complex Casework Units in each of the CPS Areas will deal with more complex homicide cases; other homicide cases will be handled by senior prosecutors in the Areas. The Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division in CPS headquarters also deals with a wide range of homicide cases including deaths in custody, assisted suicides, terrorist-related homicides and homicides arising from so-called ‘disaster' cases. There are no additional considerations where the events in question occurred more than three years prior to the conclusion of the inquest or public inquiry.