Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what offences will be eligible for trial without jury by the Crown Court Bench Division proposal in the Courts and Tribunals Bill.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Courts and Tribunals Bill introduces judge-only trials for triable either-way offences where the courts assess that the likely custodial sentence, applying the relevant sentencing guidelines to the alleged facts and any appropriate representations, is three years imprisonment or less. Indictable-only offences are excluded and will not be eligible for this mode of trial, described as the Crown Court Bench Division.
Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications for judicial review relating to NHS service reconfiguration decisions in England were lodged in each year since 2015; and in how many of those cases permission to proceed was granted.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Data on the number of judicial review applications relating to NHS service reconfiguration decisions in England — and the number in which permission to proceed was granted— is included within the official Judicial Review statistics published on the Civil Justice Statistics webpage: Civil justice statistics quarterly - GOV.UK.
These statistics are presented in broad categories and do not separately identify cases concerning NHS service reconfiguration.
Asked by: Claire Coutinho (Conservative - East Surrey)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether (a) his Department and (b) the arms length bodies sponsored by his Department are compliant with the Supreme Court ruling in the case of For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025].
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We have set out our expectation that all duty bearers, including Departments and arm’s-length bodies, follow the law as clarified by the Supreme Court ruling and seek specialist legal advice where necessary. The Prime Minister has underlined this recently.
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has submitted a draft Code of Practice on services, public functions and associations to Ministers, and we are reviewing it with the care it deserves. This will provide further guidance to duty bearers.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff within his Department are reliant on a visa for employment.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
This information could only be provided at disproportionate cost. |
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the average length of time it takes for a court case to be processed and concluded in (a) Basildon, (b) Essex, and (c) England.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the time taken ‘at court’ in the magistrates’ courts and Crown Court for Essex in the ‘Magistrates’ courts timeliness tool’ and the ‘End-to-end timeliness tool’ (Crown Court).
Magistrates ‘at court’ time refers to the number of days from first listing to completion at the magistrates’ court and for the Crown Court it refers to the time from first listing at the magistrates’ court to completion at the Crown Court.
Data for the Essex Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB) can be found using the ‘geographic area’ filter - Criminal court statistics - GOV.UK
LCJB is the lowest geographic level of our published Accredited Official Statistics for timeliness. Our published timeliness metrics are produced at a sufficiently 'high' level to reduce the volatility and fluctuations associated with low volumes of cases i.e. using court level data. As a result, we are unable to provide timeliness data for individual courts in Basildon.
The publication provides data for ‘England and Wales’ but does not contain a breakdown for England alone. When looking at data for England, the median time spent ‘at court’ across magistrates’ courts was 0 days for the year ending September 2025. This is due to the high proportion of Single Justice Procedure cases which commence and conclude on the same day. For the Crown Court, the median time spent ‘at court’ was 172 days for the same period.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the current number of court cases awaiting hearings in (a) Essex and (b) Basildon.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the number of open criminal cases at the Crown Court for Essex in the ‘Crown Court receipts, disposals and open cases tool’ and for the magistrates’ courts in the ‘Magistrates’ courts receipts, disposals and open cases tool’. Essex can be selected under Local Criminal Justice Board (LCJB).
Data is published for Basildon Crown Court in the Crown Court tool under the Crown Court filter - Criminal court statistics - GOV.UK
Data is not published at court level for the magistrates’ courts. The open caseload for the Basildon magistrates’ court was 1,700 as of the end of September 2025.
The open caseload reflects the workload in the courts at a given time. It will never be zero, as it reflects the volume of cases that are active in the courts at a particular point, including those recently received, those close to being disposed, those which are complex and take time to complete, and those that may be awaiting further hearings.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the 12-week Prison Office Entry Level Training in teaching new prison officers security procedures and de-escalation and rehabilitation techniques to deal with complex environments in our prison system.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Foundation Prison Officer training is designed to ensure that all new prison officers are supported and feel competent in their roles. All new entrants undertake a minimum of ten weeks of training, beginning with a ten-day induction process to familiarise them with the prison environment, including meeting line managers and colleagues and learning key security procedures. This is followed by either seven weeks in the male estate, eight weeks in the female estate, or nine weeks in the Youth Custody Service, delivered through face-to-face training at a central or local learning venue. Officers then return to their establishment for a final week of consolidation and shadowing.
The foundation training package develops verbal communication and interpersonal skills, ensuring new officers are able to identify vulnerable prisoners, support them appropriately, and defuse potential conflict. This includes training in de-escalation techniques and, where the use of force is necessary, instruction on how to do so in line with organisational procedures and the law.
Foundation training also equips officers with the skills required to maintain and update documentation, records and supporting systems, alongside the knowledge of security procedures, including searching techniques and the management and use of keys.
Additionally, the Enable Programme is redeveloping the current foundation training for new entry prison officers into a 12-month modular package, reinforcing the principle of continuous professional development. It positions training as an evolving journey rather than a discrete, front-loaded phase at the start of a career, building on knowledge and application of that through their probationary period.
The revised training aims to support the development of compassionate, competent and confident prison officers, able to deliver a wide range of operational and interpersonal skills underpinned by relational practice and rehabilitative working. The work is strongly aligned with that of Lord Timpson’s Review of Foundation Training Delivery for Prison Officers which focused on improving the learner experience with enhanced support, pride and greater rigour being applied; establishing an operating model with the right people, venues, curriculum, and standards in place; and encouraging a continuous learning environment with clear channels of accountability.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the factors that led to the abscondment of Daniel Boakye.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
A formal investigation has been commissioned into the circumstances surrounding the escape from custody. Additional management checks are also being undertaken in relation to all operational staff who may be called upon to undertake escort duty.
Public safety is the Government’s priority. Following a joint operation by the Metropolitan Police, the National Crime Agency and the French authorities, we have received confirmation that Daniel Boakye has now been detained in France. Arrangements are being made to secure his return to the UK.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress has he made with the Secretary of State for the Home Department in apprehending Daniel Boakye following his abscondment.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
A formal investigation has been commissioned into the circumstances surrounding the escape from custody. Additional management checks are also being undertaken in relation to all operational staff who may be called upon to undertake escort duty.
Public safety is the Government’s priority. Following a joint operation by the Metropolitan Police, the National Crime Agency and the French authorities, we have received confirmation that Daniel Boakye has now been detained in France. Arrangements are being made to secure his return to the UK.
Asked by: James Wild (Conservative - North West Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance is provided to the Chief Executive of HMPPS regarding assessing the potential impact on public confidence in the Early Removal Scheme or the criminal justice system of a decision to authorise removal of a foreign national offender.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We do not collate information on how many cases are referred to the Chief Executive of HMPPS under the Early Removal Scheme or the outcome of such referrals.
Guidance to Prison Governors, and all those involved in administering the scheme including the Chief Executive, is contained in the Prison Service Instruction: The Early Removal Scheme and Release of Foreign National Prisoners (PSI 04/2013) which was last updated on 23 September 2025 and is available at the following link: Early removal scheme and release of foreign national prisoners.
This gives information on the circumstances where removal might undermine the Scheme or public confidence in the criminal justice system.