Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask His Majesty's Government what procedure, if any, exists within the Criminal Cases Review Commission for ensuring priority is given to those cases where an applicant has a limited life expectancy, due to age or infirmity.

Information on the number of cases received and completed, and the average duration of a review, is available on the Criminal Cases Review Commission’s (CCRC) website and in their annual report. The table below provides data for the last five complete business years:

The average number of Case Review Managers over the past five years is as follows:

Section three of the CCRC’s published Case Review Process policy (CW-POL-04-Case-Review-Process-v3.0.pdf (cloud-platform-e218f50a4812967ba1215eaecede923f.s3.amazonaws.com)) outlines that cases are generally allocated in date order of receipt. However, there are several exceptional factors which determine the degree of priority once a case is under review. These assessments are fluid and relative to the needs of other cases. There are several factors for a case to be given higher priority, these include old age (75 years or older) and/or ill health, supported by medical evidence, where there is concern that the applicant may die before the case is dealt with. In addition, evidence that the applicant’s serious ill health (or that of any close family member of the applicant) is directly and significantly aggravated by any delay will also result in the case being given higher priority. The full list of factors for a case to be given a higher priority can be found in the Case Review Process policy.