Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what evidence his Department has gathered from schemes overseas comparable with the proposed Interest on Lawyers’ Client Accounts scheme.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Interest on Lawyer’s Client Account schemes have been successfully employed in several international jurisdictions for decades. As part of developing this proposal, the Ministry of Justice has undertaken extensive research and engagement with experts, officials and administrators from several international comparators. This includes schemes in Australia, Canada, France and the USA.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of amending the Aarhus Convention provisions on costs in planning cases.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government remains committed to upholding its obligations under the Aarhus Convention, including maintaining access to environmental justice that is not prohibitively expensive. We set up the Environmental Costs Protection Regime (ECPR) in 2013 to enable this, and in May 2025 we committed to a series of measures to strengthen the regime. We keep all policies under review and, importantly, judges already have the power to vary the costs caps upwards or downwards, taking into account the particular circumstances of a case.
Between September and December 2024, the Government ran a Call for Evidence on access to justice in relation to the Aarhus Convention. This Call for Evidence considered the recommendations of the Aarhus Convention Compliance Committee regarding whether changes are required to the ECPR. The Government intends to publish a response to this Call for Evidence in due course.
Further, the Government published its response to the Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce’s Review on Friday 13 March 2026. The Government recognises the concerns raised by the Taskforce regarding delays caused by a small number of unmeritorious legal challenges against nuclear developments and other major infrastructure projects, which could jeopardise our goal of reaching net zero by 2050. That is why we have accepted the Taskforce’s proposals in recommendation 20 to adjust the costs caps.
These adjustments will be undertaken with a view to prioritising genuine legal challenges, whilst supporting the Government’s growth mission by supporting us to build the necessary infrastructure essential for energy security, economic growth, and net zero. We will therefore invite the Civil Procedure Rule Committee to adjust the ECPR with this aim in mind.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of how many unregistered Islamic marriages there have been in the UK in each of the last ten years.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice does not collect data on the number of religious-only Islamic marriages that take place in the UK.
The Government is aware of the differential treatment faced by groups that do not have a legally binding religious ceremony under the current law, and that some people, particularly women, can face serious financial problems as a result, if their relationship breaks down.
That is why we have committed to weddings law reform that will make it more straightforward for religious groups to get legally married in accordance with their beliefs. We will be undertaking a consultation on the reform of weddings law in England and Wales, early this year.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether judges have been consulted about possible increased personal risks of replacing some jury trials with named judge trials as proposed in the Courts and Tribunals Bill.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The safety and security, welfare, and independence of the judiciary remain paramount. Engagement with the judiciary on the court reform measures in the Courts and Tribunals Bill included consideration of personal safety and security. We will continue to work with the judiciary as the Courts and Tribunals Bill progresses and these measures are implemented.
When implemented, judge‑only trials will operate within the existing robust HMCTS security framework. This already includes a range of judicial security policies and procedures, such as the Judicial Harassment Protocol, designed to protect judicial office holders in court, outside of court, and online as a result of their judicial role.
Last year, the Department invested over £20 million extra funding in judicial security, and HMCTS is continuing to improve its security procedures. We stand ready to do more if required.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the level of risk to named judges who replace juries in trials.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The safety and security, welfare, and independence of the judiciary remain paramount. Engagement with the judiciary on the court reform measures in the Courts and Tribunals Bill included consideration of personal safety and security. We will continue to work with the judiciary as the Courts and Tribunals Bill progresses and these measures are implemented.
When implemented, judge‑only trials will operate within the existing robust HMCTS security framework. This already includes a range of judicial security policies and procedures, such as the Judicial Harassment Protocol, designed to protect judicial office holders in court, outside of court, and online as a result of their judicial role.
Last year, the Department invested over £20 million extra funding in judicial security, and HMCTS is continuing to improve its security procedures. We stand ready to do more if required.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the date that a vacancy to become a Magistrate on the Shropshire bench was a) advertised b) recruited to.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
For the Family Court, the most recent Shropshire vacancies were advertised from 1 February 2024 and closed on 29 February 2024. For the Adult (crime) Court, the vacancies were advertised from 2 July 2024 and closed on 29 July 2024.
Appointments to the Shropshire bench arising from these campaigns were made in June and July 2025.
We expect Shropshire to open its next recruitment in May 2026.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Answer to Question 103509, when he expects Dame Lynne Owens’ independent investigation into the mistaken release of Hadush Kebatu from HMP Chelmsford on 24th of October 2025 to conclude.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
On 11 November, the Deputy Prime Minister announced a five-point national action plan to reduce releases in error, which includes strengthening release checks across prisons and commissioning an independent review led by Dame Lynne Owens.
The Deputy Prime Minister has recently received the review and is carefully considering Dame Lynne’s findings and recommendations. The Government will respond shortly.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of aligning the legal age to become a magistrate with the lower voting age.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government has no current plans to review the minimum age to become a magistrate.
Asked by: Lord Moraes (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to including the legal registration rights of adults to be registered as British citizens under the British Nationality Act 1981 within the scope of civil legal aid.
Answered by Baroness Levitt - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) sets out the matters in scope of legal aid and the eligibility criteria, and seeks to ensure that legal aid is available to those most in need.
The rights of adults to be registered as British citizens under the British Nationality Act 1981 is not within scope of legal aid. Where an issue falls outside the scope of legal aid, individuals can apply for Exceptional Case Funding (ECF). ECF will be granted if, without legal aid, there is a risk that the person’s human rights may be breached. ECF applications are determined by the Legal Aid Agency on a case-by-case basis.
Legal aid is available for separated migrant children for applications for registration as a British citizen or British subject, and for immigration applications for entry clearance, leave to enter, or to remain in the United Kingdom. This provision is available due to the particular vulnerability of this cohort, subject to means and merits testing as applicable.
We regularly engage with other government departments to understand the impact of their policies on immigration legal aid and consider taking action to expand the scope of legal aid where needed.
Asked by: Lloyd Hatton (Labour - South Dorset)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to tackle backlogs in the courts.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Sir Brian’s report set out a blueprint for pragmatic structural reform in our criminal courts and made clear that action across the process is essential.
The Courts and Tribunals Bill is the first step to putting that blueprint into law. Coupled with record investment in sitting days and criminal legal aid and modernisation of listing practices and use of case coordinators and blitz courts to boost efficiencies, we are taking a neglected service and bringing it, finally, into the 21st century.