Asked by: Rachel Blake (Labour (Co-op) - Cities of London and Westminster)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans his Department has to respond to the Law Commission’s consultation on New Funerary Methods.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
It is anticipated that the Law Commission will publish a final report and draft Bill in relation to the New Funerary Methods project in Spring 2026.
We await the Commission’s findings and recommendations with interest and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the median waiting time was between a request for a registered intermediary and allocation in each of the last three years; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of these waiting times on the (a) wellbeing of victims and (b) the progress of their cases.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The table below sets out the proportion of requests for a registered intermediary that were successfully matched, as well as those that could not be matched, were cancelled by the police or CPS, or where matching was still in progress at the end of the calendar year. This is broken down for victims, prosecution witnesses and defence witnesses for the calendar years 2022-2024 (the most recent years for which published data is available through the Witness Intermediary Scheme annual report):
Year | Allocation status | Defence Witness | Prosecution Witness | Victim | Total |
2022 | Matched | 3 (100%) | 733 (95.2%) | 7,018 (95.5%) | 7,754 (95.4%) |
Unmatched |
| 16 (2%) | 179 (2.4%) | 195 (2.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 21 (2.7%) | 151 (2.1%) | 172 (2.1%) | |
In Progress |
|
| 4 (0.1%) | 4 (0%) | |
Total | 3 | 770 | 7,352 | 8,125 | |
2023 | Matched | 1 (100.0%) | 678 (94.4%) | 8,077 (94.8%) | 8,756 (94.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 19 (2.6%) | 182 (2.1%) | 201 (2.2%) | |
Cancelled |
| 19 (2.6%) | 183 (2.1%) | 202 (2.2%) | |
In Progress |
| 2 (0.3%) | 79 (0.9%) | 81 (0.9%) | |
Total | 1 | 718 | 8,521 | 9,240 | |
2024 | Matched | 4 (100.0%) | 554 (93.3%) | 8,789 (96.0%) | 9,347 (95.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 10 (1.7%) | 130 (1.4%) | 140 (1.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 20 (3.4%) | 164 (1.8%) | 184 (1.9%) | |
In Progress |
| 10 (1.7%) | 72 (0.8%) | 82 (0.8%) | |
Total | 4 | 594 | 9,155 | 9,753 |
Unmatched cases include those where:
Therefore, not all unmatched requests indicate that the individual did not have a RI for their case.
The National Crime Agency, who administer the Witness Intermediary Scheme on behalf of the Ministry of Justice does not collect waiting times between the making of a request for a Registered Intermediary, so no data is available on the number of cases that were delayed due to capacity constraints.
The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the waiting time between the request for a registered intermediary and matching of the intermediary. The allocation of a Registered Intermediary in each case will be dependent on a number of requirements including the availability of the witness and the investigation officer as well the availability and skillset of the registered intermediary. Where a case is flagged as urgent, the National Crime Agency will endeavour to prioritise the case, including seeking registered intermediary support out of hours or at the weekend.
The Ministry of Justice recruits and trains Registered Intermediaries on an ongoing basis to meet growing demand. These are informed by annual gap analyses to ascertain where demand is growing. In the 3 years to 2024, we have recruited 88 additional RIs to the Scheme.
The table below sets out the rate at which requests for a Registered Intermediary (from both the police and CPS) in each police force area were matched in 2024. We do not hold data on waiting times for intermediaries. We also do not hold data broken down by Crown Court circuit.
Police Force Area | Cancelled | Matched | Unmatched | Total |
Avon & Somerset | 1 (0.6%) | 173 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 177 |
Bedfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Cambridgeshire | 2 (1.4%) | 139 (94.6%) | 6.0 (4.1%) | 147 |
Cheshire | 5 (3.3%) | 145 (96.7%) | 0.0 (0%) | 150 |
Cleveland | 6 (5.4%) | 102 (91.9%) | 3.0 (2.7%) | 111 |
Cumbria | 2 (3.4%) | 56 (94.9%) | 1.0 (1.7%) | 59 |
Derbyshire | 2 (0.7%) | 294 (98.0%) | 4.0 (1.3%) | 300 |
Devon & Cornwall | 12 (2.5%) | 450 (95.3%) | 10.0 (2.1%) | 472 |
Dorset | 1 (0.6%) | 171 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 175 |
Durham | 5 (2.3%) | 213 (95.9%) | 4.0 (1.8%) | 222 |
Dyfed-Powys | 1 (1.4%) | 69 (98.6%) | 0.0 (0%) | 70 |
Essex | 5 (2.0%) | 234 (95.9%) | 5.0 (2.0%) | 244 |
Gloucestershire | 3 (2.2%) | 129 (96.3%) | 2.0 (1.5%) | 134 |
Greater Manchester | 6 (2.7%) | 214 (96.4%) | 2.0 (0.9%) | 222 |
Gwent | 2 (1.3%) | 148 (95.5%) | 5.0 (3.2%) | 155 |
Hampshire | 5 (1.5%) | 318 (96.7%) | 6.0 (1.8%) | 329 |
Hertfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Humberside | 3 (1.9%) | 152 (98.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 155 |
Kent | 7 (1.6%) | 421 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.6%) | 435 |
Lancashire | 0.0 (0%) | 251 (99.2%) | 2 (0.8%) | 253 |
Leicestershire | 3 (2.1%) | 137 (95.1%) | 4.0 (2.8%) | 144 |
Lincolnshire | 7 (4.1%) | 147 (86.5%) | 16.0 (9.4%) | 170 |
London | 21 (2.6%) | 769 (95.4%) | 16.0 (2.0%) | 806 |
Merseyside | 3 (1.1%) | 258 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.1%) | 264 |
Norfolk | 9 (6.5%) | 119 (86.2%) | 10.0 (7.2%) | 138 |
North Wales | 4 (2.5%) | 154 (95.7%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 161 |
North Yorkshire | 4 (2.0%) | 193 (98.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 197 |
Northamptonshire | 4 (2.6%) | 149 (96.1%) | 2.0 (1.3%) | 155 |
Northumbria | 10 (3.0%) | 321 (96.1%) | 3.0 (0.9%) | 334 |
Nottinghamshire | 7 (2.9%) | 227 (94.6%) | 6.0 (2.5%) | 240 |
South Wales | 2 (0.6%) | 306 (96.2%) | 10.0 (3.1%) | 318 |
South Yorkshire | 3 (1.0%) | 303 (99.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 306 |
Staffordshire | 6 (1.8%) | 319 (97.0%) | 4.0 (1.2%) | 329 |
Suffolk | 3 (2.4%) | 118 (95.9%) | 2.0 (1.6%) | 123 |
Surrey | 2 (1.2%) | 155 (96.9%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 160 |
Sussex | 8 (3.1%) | 246 (96.1%) | 2.0 (0.8%) | 256 |
Thames Valley | 5 (2.1%) | 234 (96.7%) | 3.0 (1.2%) | 242 |
Warwickshire | 3 (3.9%) | 73 (96.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 76 |
West Mercia | 7 (2.3%) | 285 (95.6%) | 6.0 (2.0%) | 298 |
West Midlands | 13 (2.1%) | 602 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.1%) | 622 |
West Yorkshire | 3 (0.8%) | 377 (98.7%) | 2.0 (0.5%) | 382 |
Wiltshire | 1 (1.2%) | 83 (96.5%) | 2.0 (2.3%) | 86 |
Total | 198 (2%) | 9,386 (96.2%) | 169 (1.7%) | 9,753 |
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the registered intermediary allocation (a) rates and (b) waiting times are in each (i) police force area and (ii) Crown Court circuits; and what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that all vulnerable victims have access to intermediaries.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The table below sets out the proportion of requests for a registered intermediary that were successfully matched, as well as those that could not be matched, were cancelled by the police or CPS, or where matching was still in progress at the end of the calendar year. This is broken down for victims, prosecution witnesses and defence witnesses for the calendar years 2022-2024 (the most recent years for which published data is available through the Witness Intermediary Scheme annual report):
Year | Allocation status | Defence Witness | Prosecution Witness | Victim | Total |
2022 | Matched | 3 (100%) | 733 (95.2%) | 7,018 (95.5%) | 7,754 (95.4%) |
Unmatched |
| 16 (2%) | 179 (2.4%) | 195 (2.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 21 (2.7%) | 151 (2.1%) | 172 (2.1%) | |
In Progress |
|
| 4 (0.1%) | 4 (0%) | |
Total | 3 | 770 | 7,352 | 8,125 | |
2023 | Matched | 1 (100.0%) | 678 (94.4%) | 8,077 (94.8%) | 8,756 (94.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 19 (2.6%) | 182 (2.1%) | 201 (2.2%) | |
Cancelled |
| 19 (2.6%) | 183 (2.1%) | 202 (2.2%) | |
In Progress |
| 2 (0.3%) | 79 (0.9%) | 81 (0.9%) | |
Total | 1 | 718 | 8,521 | 9,240 | |
2024 | Matched | 4 (100.0%) | 554 (93.3%) | 8,789 (96.0%) | 9,347 (95.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 10 (1.7%) | 130 (1.4%) | 140 (1.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 20 (3.4%) | 164 (1.8%) | 184 (1.9%) | |
In Progress |
| 10 (1.7%) | 72 (0.8%) | 82 (0.8%) | |
Total | 4 | 594 | 9,155 | 9,753 |
Unmatched cases include those where:
Therefore, not all unmatched requests indicate that the individual did not have a RI for their case.
The National Crime Agency, who administer the Witness Intermediary Scheme on behalf of the Ministry of Justice does not collect waiting times between the making of a request for a Registered Intermediary, so no data is available on the number of cases that were delayed due to capacity constraints.
The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the waiting time between the request for a registered intermediary and matching of the intermediary. The allocation of a Registered Intermediary in each case will be dependent on a number of requirements including the availability of the witness and the investigation officer as well the availability and skillset of the registered intermediary. Where a case is flagged as urgent, the National Crime Agency will endeavour to prioritise the case, including seeking registered intermediary support out of hours or at the weekend.
The Ministry of Justice recruits and trains Registered Intermediaries on an ongoing basis to meet growing demand. These are informed by annual gap analyses to ascertain where demand is growing. In the 3 years to 2024, we have recruited 88 additional RIs to the Scheme.
The table below sets out the rate at which requests for a Registered Intermediary (from both the police and CPS) in each police force area were matched in 2024. We do not hold data on waiting times for intermediaries. We also do not hold data broken down by Crown Court circuit.
Police Force Area | Cancelled | Matched | Unmatched | Total |
Avon & Somerset | 1 (0.6%) | 173 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 177 |
Bedfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Cambridgeshire | 2 (1.4%) | 139 (94.6%) | 6.0 (4.1%) | 147 |
Cheshire | 5 (3.3%) | 145 (96.7%) | 0.0 (0%) | 150 |
Cleveland | 6 (5.4%) | 102 (91.9%) | 3.0 (2.7%) | 111 |
Cumbria | 2 (3.4%) | 56 (94.9%) | 1.0 (1.7%) | 59 |
Derbyshire | 2 (0.7%) | 294 (98.0%) | 4.0 (1.3%) | 300 |
Devon & Cornwall | 12 (2.5%) | 450 (95.3%) | 10.0 (2.1%) | 472 |
Dorset | 1 (0.6%) | 171 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 175 |
Durham | 5 (2.3%) | 213 (95.9%) | 4.0 (1.8%) | 222 |
Dyfed-Powys | 1 (1.4%) | 69 (98.6%) | 0.0 (0%) | 70 |
Essex | 5 (2.0%) | 234 (95.9%) | 5.0 (2.0%) | 244 |
Gloucestershire | 3 (2.2%) | 129 (96.3%) | 2.0 (1.5%) | 134 |
Greater Manchester | 6 (2.7%) | 214 (96.4%) | 2.0 (0.9%) | 222 |
Gwent | 2 (1.3%) | 148 (95.5%) | 5.0 (3.2%) | 155 |
Hampshire | 5 (1.5%) | 318 (96.7%) | 6.0 (1.8%) | 329 |
Hertfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Humberside | 3 (1.9%) | 152 (98.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 155 |
Kent | 7 (1.6%) | 421 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.6%) | 435 |
Lancashire | 0.0 (0%) | 251 (99.2%) | 2 (0.8%) | 253 |
Leicestershire | 3 (2.1%) | 137 (95.1%) | 4.0 (2.8%) | 144 |
Lincolnshire | 7 (4.1%) | 147 (86.5%) | 16.0 (9.4%) | 170 |
London | 21 (2.6%) | 769 (95.4%) | 16.0 (2.0%) | 806 |
Merseyside | 3 (1.1%) | 258 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.1%) | 264 |
Norfolk | 9 (6.5%) | 119 (86.2%) | 10.0 (7.2%) | 138 |
North Wales | 4 (2.5%) | 154 (95.7%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 161 |
North Yorkshire | 4 (2.0%) | 193 (98.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 197 |
Northamptonshire | 4 (2.6%) | 149 (96.1%) | 2.0 (1.3%) | 155 |
Northumbria | 10 (3.0%) | 321 (96.1%) | 3.0 (0.9%) | 334 |
Nottinghamshire | 7 (2.9%) | 227 (94.6%) | 6.0 (2.5%) | 240 |
South Wales | 2 (0.6%) | 306 (96.2%) | 10.0 (3.1%) | 318 |
South Yorkshire | 3 (1.0%) | 303 (99.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 306 |
Staffordshire | 6 (1.8%) | 319 (97.0%) | 4.0 (1.2%) | 329 |
Suffolk | 3 (2.4%) | 118 (95.9%) | 2.0 (1.6%) | 123 |
Surrey | 2 (1.2%) | 155 (96.9%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 160 |
Sussex | 8 (3.1%) | 246 (96.1%) | 2.0 (0.8%) | 256 |
Thames Valley | 5 (2.1%) | 234 (96.7%) | 3.0 (1.2%) | 242 |
Warwickshire | 3 (3.9%) | 73 (96.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 76 |
West Mercia | 7 (2.3%) | 285 (95.6%) | 6.0 (2.0%) | 298 |
West Midlands | 13 (2.1%) | 602 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.1%) | 622 |
West Yorkshire | 3 (0.8%) | 377 (98.7%) | 2.0 (0.5%) | 382 |
Wiltshire | 1 (1.2%) | 83 (96.5%) | 2.0 (2.3%) | 86 |
Total | 198 (2%) | 9,386 (96.2%) | 169 (1.7%) | 9,753 |
Asked by: Gurinder Singh Josan (Labour - Smethwick)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the link between individuals holding a criminal record and (a) unemployment and (b) PIP claimants.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
The Ministry of Justice does not hold specific information on the link between having a criminal record and (a) unemployment or (b) Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants.
We know that employment can reduce the likelihood of reoffending by up to nine percentage points in the year following release. This is why the Government has committed to supporting ex-offenders into work, including through launching regional Employment Councils, which bring businesses together with prisons, probation and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to support offenders in the community.
We recognise that having a criminal record can impact on someone’s employment opportunities, but it should not be an automatic barrier to employment. The criminal records disclosure framework is designed to balance rehabilitation with maintaining safeguarding and public protection principles. Our guidance for employers makes clear that recruitment decisions should be based on a balanced assessment of relevance, context, and risk.
DWP also does not hold data on the criminal record of claimants to PIP as this, together with their employment status, does not form part of the eligibility criteria for the benefit. We continue to work across Government to improve data-sharing and build a clearer picture of people’s employment support needs.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance he has issued on engagement between his Department and the legal representatives of prisoners undertaking prolonged hunger strikes.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Under the Prison Rules and Prison Service Instruction 49/2011 Prisoner Communication Services, prisoners are entitled to confidential access to their legal advisers, including by telephone, in person legal visits, and written correspondence, all of which must take place without being monitored except in exceptional, legally defined circumstances. Prisons must facilitate reasonable opportunities for legal contact, such as providing access to visit rooms, scheduling telephone calls, and ensuring that mail to and from legal representatives is handled promptly and without routine opening or interference.
On 24 December, the Deputy Prime Minister wrote in response to a letter from legal representatives of those who were refusing food. He offered to facilitate a meeting between senior representatives of the healthcare provider and the prisoners’ solicitors. This offer was accepted on 8 January, and the meeting took place on 9 January.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South and Walkden)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average length of time spent on remand in custody was in the most recent 12-month period for which data is available.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Information relating to the time spent on custodial remand is not centrally held by the Ministry of Justice. To obtain the data to answer this question would involve a manual interrogation of court records which would result in a disproportionate cost to the Department.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of vulnerable (a) victims and (b) witnesses assessed as requiring a registered intermediary under the Witness Intermediary Scheme were allocated one in each of the last three years; and how many requests were (i) refused and (ii) delayed due to availability constraints.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The table below sets out the proportion of requests for a registered intermediary that were successfully matched, as well as those that could not be matched, were cancelled by the police or CPS, or where matching was still in progress at the end of the calendar year. This is broken down for victims, prosecution witnesses and defence witnesses for the calendar years 2022-2024 (the most recent years for which published data is available through the Witness Intermediary Scheme annual report):
Year | Allocation status | Defence Witness | Prosecution Witness | Victim | Total |
2022 | Matched | 3 (100%) | 733 (95.2%) | 7,018 (95.5%) | 7,754 (95.4%) |
Unmatched |
| 16 (2%) | 179 (2.4%) | 195 (2.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 21 (2.7%) | 151 (2.1%) | 172 (2.1%) | |
In Progress |
|
| 4 (0.1%) | 4 (0%) | |
Total | 3 | 770 | 7,352 | 8,125 | |
2023 | Matched | 1 (100.0%) | 678 (94.4%) | 8,077 (94.8%) | 8,756 (94.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 19 (2.6%) | 182 (2.1%) | 201 (2.2%) | |
Cancelled |
| 19 (2.6%) | 183 (2.1%) | 202 (2.2%) | |
In Progress |
| 2 (0.3%) | 79 (0.9%) | 81 (0.9%) | |
Total | 1 | 718 | 8,521 | 9,240 | |
2024 | Matched | 4 (100.0%) | 554 (93.3%) | 8,789 (96.0%) | 9,347 (95.8%) |
Unmatched |
| 10 (1.7%) | 130 (1.4%) | 140 (1.4%) | |
Cancelled |
| 20 (3.4%) | 164 (1.8%) | 184 (1.9%) | |
In Progress |
| 10 (1.7%) | 72 (0.8%) | 82 (0.8%) | |
Total | 4 | 594 | 9,155 | 9,753 |
Unmatched cases include those where:
Therefore, not all unmatched requests indicate that the individual did not have a RI for their case.
The National Crime Agency, who administer the Witness Intermediary Scheme on behalf of the Ministry of Justice does not collect waiting times between the making of a request for a Registered Intermediary, so no data is available on the number of cases that were delayed due to capacity constraints.
The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the waiting time between the request for a registered intermediary and matching of the intermediary. The allocation of a Registered Intermediary in each case will be dependent on a number of requirements including the availability of the witness and the investigation officer as well the availability and skillset of the registered intermediary. Where a case is flagged as urgent, the National Crime Agency will endeavour to prioritise the case, including seeking registered intermediary support out of hours or at the weekend.
The Ministry of Justice recruits and trains Registered Intermediaries on an ongoing basis to meet growing demand. These are informed by annual gap analyses to ascertain where demand is growing. In the 3 years to 2024, we have recruited 88 additional RIs to the Scheme.
The table below sets out the rate at which requests for a Registered Intermediary (from both the police and CPS) in each police force area were matched in 2024. We do not hold data on waiting times for intermediaries. We also do not hold data broken down by Crown Court circuit.
Police Force Area | Cancelled | Matched | Unmatched | Total |
Avon & Somerset | 1 (0.6%) | 173 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 177 |
Bedfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Cambridgeshire | 2 (1.4%) | 139 (94.6%) | 6.0 (4.1%) | 147 |
Cheshire | 5 (3.3%) | 145 (96.7%) | 0.0 (0%) | 150 |
Cleveland | 6 (5.4%) | 102 (91.9%) | 3.0 (2.7%) | 111 |
Cumbria | 2 (3.4%) | 56 (94.9%) | 1.0 (1.7%) | 59 |
Derbyshire | 2 (0.7%) | 294 (98.0%) | 4.0 (1.3%) | 300 |
Devon & Cornwall | 12 (2.5%) | 450 (95.3%) | 10.0 (2.1%) | 472 |
Dorset | 1 (0.6%) | 171 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.7%) | 175 |
Durham | 5 (2.3%) | 213 (95.9%) | 4.0 (1.8%) | 222 |
Dyfed-Powys | 1 (1.4%) | 69 (98.6%) | 0.0 (0%) | 70 |
Essex | 5 (2.0%) | 234 (95.9%) | 5.0 (2.0%) | 244 |
Gloucestershire | 3 (2.2%) | 129 (96.3%) | 2.0 (1.5%) | 134 |
Greater Manchester | 6 (2.7%) | 214 (96.4%) | 2.0 (0.9%) | 222 |
Gwent | 2 (1.3%) | 148 (95.5%) | 5.0 (3.2%) | 155 |
Hampshire | 5 (1.5%) | 318 (96.7%) | 6.0 (1.8%) | 329 |
Hertfordshire | 1 (1.5%) | 66 (97.1%) | 1.0 (1.5%) | 68 |
Humberside | 3 (1.9%) | 152 (98.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 155 |
Kent | 7 (1.6%) | 421 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.6%) | 435 |
Lancashire | 0.0 (0%) | 251 (99.2%) | 2 (0.8%) | 253 |
Leicestershire | 3 (2.1%) | 137 (95.1%) | 4.0 (2.8%) | 144 |
Lincolnshire | 7 (4.1%) | 147 (86.5%) | 16.0 (9.4%) | 170 |
London | 21 (2.6%) | 769 (95.4%) | 16.0 (2.0%) | 806 |
Merseyside | 3 (1.1%) | 258 (97.7%) | 3.0 (1.1%) | 264 |
Norfolk | 9 (6.5%) | 119 (86.2%) | 10.0 (7.2%) | 138 |
North Wales | 4 (2.5%) | 154 (95.7%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 161 |
North Yorkshire | 4 (2.0%) | 193 (98.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 197 |
Northamptonshire | 4 (2.6%) | 149 (96.1%) | 2.0 (1.3%) | 155 |
Northumbria | 10 (3.0%) | 321 (96.1%) | 3.0 (0.9%) | 334 |
Nottinghamshire | 7 (2.9%) | 227 (94.6%) | 6.0 (2.5%) | 240 |
South Wales | 2 (0.6%) | 306 (96.2%) | 10.0 (3.1%) | 318 |
South Yorkshire | 3 (1.0%) | 303 (99.0%) | 0.0 (0%) | 306 |
Staffordshire | 6 (1.8%) | 319 (97.0%) | 4.0 (1.2%) | 329 |
Suffolk | 3 (2.4%) | 118 (95.9%) | 2.0 (1.6%) | 123 |
Surrey | 2 (1.2%) | 155 (96.9%) | 3.0 (1.9%) | 160 |
Sussex | 8 (3.1%) | 246 (96.1%) | 2.0 (0.8%) | 256 |
Thames Valley | 5 (2.1%) | 234 (96.7%) | 3.0 (1.2%) | 242 |
Warwickshire | 3 (3.9%) | 73 (96.1%) | 0.0 (0%) | 76 |
West Mercia | 7 (2.3%) | 285 (95.6%) | 6.0 (2.0%) | 298 |
West Midlands | 13 (2.1%) | 602 (96.8%) | 7.0 (1.1%) | 622 |
West Yorkshire | 3 (0.8%) | 377 (98.7%) | 2.0 (0.5%) | 382 |
Wiltshire | 1 (1.2%) | 83 (96.5%) | 2.0 (2.3%) | 86 |
Total | 198 (2%) | 9,386 (96.2%) | 169 (1.7%) | 9,753 |
Asked by: Nick Timothy (Conservative - West Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Written Statement of 22 January 2026 on Response to Legal Aid Agency cyber attack, HCWS1265, how much funding will be allocated to the transformation programme for Legal Aid Agency digital services.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The amount of funding which will be allocated to the transformation programme for Legal Aid Agency digital services is subject to final budget allocation decisions, which are currently ongoing.
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: 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.