Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of legal aid provision for immigration cases.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Legal aid is available for asylum cases, for immigration matters for victims of domestic abuse and modern slavery, for separated migrant children and for immigration detention cases.
Once commenced, individuals who receive a removal notice under the Illegal Migration Act (IMA) will have access to merits and means free legal advice in relation to the removal notice.
We have taken action to increase access to legal aid for immigration and asylum cases, by:
Setting fees for IMA work at 15% above the usual hourly rate;
Providing up to £1.4 million of funding in 2024 for accreditation and re-accreditation of senior caseworkers to conduct immigration and asylum legal aid work;
Allowing Detained Duty Advice Scheme (DDAS) providers to give guidance remotely, at the discretion of providers and subject to their professional judgement and their obligations towards vulnerable persons; and
Introducing payment for travel time between Immigration Removal Centres (IRCs) and DDAS surgeries.
The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) monitors supply across its legal aid contracts on an ongoing basis and, where demand is greater than the available supply, takes action within its operational powers to secure additional provision to ensure the continuity of legal aid-funded services.
The LAA regularly engages with provider representative groups, including on the provision of immigration and asylum services, via forums such as the Civil Contract Consultative Group.
The ongoing Review of Civil Legal Aid is considering the broader economic context of the civil legal aid market as a whole, including for immigration cases, so that it can operate sustainably in the long-term; the Green Paper consultation is expected in July 2024.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for criminal defence solicitors.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
In responding to the Criminal Legal Aid Independent Review (CLAIR), we boosted the system with upfront investment to address the most urgent concerns.
On 29 January, we published a consultation on proposed reforms to the Police Station Fee Scheme and the Youth Court, for which we propose an additional £16 million for police station work and £5.1 million for the Youth Court of funding per year. The consultation has now closed, and we are in the process of analysing the responses and considering the next steps. The government response will be published in due course.
We expect our reforms to criminal legal aid will increase investment in the solicitor profession by up to £85 million every year, including a 30% increase in funding for solicitors’ work in police stations and a 20% increase for their work in magistrates’ courts, once we introduce the additional £21 million per year allocated to these areas (subject to the consultation).
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for robbery cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for domestic abuse cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for drug-related cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for burglary cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for murder cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for fraud cases in (i) London, (ii) Slough and (iii) the rest of England.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average wait time is between (a) arrest and charge and (b) charge and trial for rape cases in (i) London, (ii) the rest of England and (iii) Slough.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government has developed a Criminal Justice Dashboard (CJS) Dashboard to bring together data from across the CJS starting at the point at which a crime is recorded by the police, through to completion in the Crown Court. The Dashboard aims to increase transparency, support collaboration and drive improvement at a local level.
The dashboard publishes information on the median number of days taken, from a crime being recorded, to reach an investigative outcome, including charges, for offences recorded by the police in England and Wales. These can be broken down by Police Force Area, and by ‘Victim based crime’, ‘State based Crime’ and ‘adult rape offences’. The latest data can be accessed via the Criminal Justice Dashboard, available here:
The Home Office does not hold information on the time between an arrest and a charge, or on the time between a charge and a trial. However, the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) holds information on the average number of days taken from charge to main hearing for rape, fraud, murder, burglary, robbery and drug offences at the Crown Court in i) London and ii) the rest of England. These are provided in the table. Data are not available for Slough and data for domestic abuse are not held centrally by the MoJ.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Chief Inspector of Prisons' report entitled, Report on an announced inspection of HMP Lewes, 5–16 February 2024, published on 14 May, what assessment he has made of the impact of the early release of prisoners on public safety.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Public protection remains our priority. End of Custody Supervised Licence (ECSL) is a temporary measure and its use is under constant review. The most serious and dangerous offenders are excluded, including all those convicted for sexual or serious violent offences, and offenders whose release is a matter for the Parole Board to decide. Those released on ECSL are subject to strict licence conditions and probation supervision.
It remains at the discretion of the prison service to prevent the release of any prisoners under this measure where releasing an offender earlier presents a heightened risk than if they were released at their automatic release date. A panel formed of HMPPS senior leaders takes decisions on exclusions following advice from prison and probation staff.