Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Section 133 (1ZA) of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 on people wrongly convicted of crimes.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act provides for the Secretary of State to pay compensation to an individual who has suffered a miscarriage of justice, subject to meeting the statutory test. This is administrated by the Miscarriages of Justice Application Service (MOJAS). Annual data is published on MOJAS setting out number of applications and who is eligible for compensation.
The Law Commission is currently undertaking a review of the criminal appeals process, including the test for compensation payable for miscarriages of justice under section 133, and we look forward to their report in 2026.
Asked by: Steve Witherden (Labour - Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether bereaved families of victims of murder would be protected under the restriction zone requirement in the Sentencing Bill.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
It is crucial that we have a justice system that punishes offenders and supports victims. That is why increasing restriction on serious sexual and violent offenders is part of our Plan for Change to cut crime and make streets safer.
Through the Sentencing Bill, we are introducing a new power which will allow restriction zones on offenders to be imposed on offenders on licence, where appropriate. These will restrict certain offenders to specific areas – so their victims know they are safe wherever else they want to go. Licence conditions for offenders convicted of murder are determined by the independent Parole Board.
We are working to finalise the operation of, and eligibility for, these zones, subject to the passage of the Sentencing Bill.
Asked by: Steve Witherden (Labour - Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the restriction zone requirement in the Sentencing Bill would apply to offenders of murder.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
It is crucial that we have a justice system that punishes offenders and supports victims. That is why increasing restriction on serious sexual and violent offenders is part of our Plan for Change to cut crime and make streets safer.
Through the Sentencing Bill, we are introducing a new power which will allow restriction zones on offenders to be imposed on offenders on licence, where appropriate. These will restrict certain offenders to specific areas – so their victims know they are safe wherever else they want to go. Licence conditions for offenders convicted of murder are determined by the independent Parole Board.
We are working to finalise the operation of, and eligibility for, these zones, subject to the passage of the Sentencing Bill.
Asked by: Jack Rankin (Conservative - Windsor)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the estimated average cost of a prisoner's breakfast is according to the latest available data.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
Data about expenditure on food and specific meals is not held centrally. Prison food budgets are determined locally (by the Governor in public sector prisons or the Director in privately managed prisons). They are kept under review as part of normal non-pay budget allocation. Our policy sets out clear expectations to provide for three balanced nutritious meals a day, including breakfast and catering managers are provided guidance to support this.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 22 September (HL10345), whether the positions of Director General of Operations and Chief Operating Officer for Prisons have now been filled on a permanent basis; and what role the Senior Leadership Committee has played in recruitment to these posts.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The roles of Director General of Operations and Chief Operating Officer for Prisons are currently being filled on an interim basis. The recruitment position is unchanged from my reply of 22 September.
Senior Leadership Committee (SLC) membership is currently made up of: Permanent Secretary, Home Office (who serves as the Chair); Permanent Secretary, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Permanent Secretary, HM Treasury; Chief Executive of the Civil Service and Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government; Permanent Secretary, Department for Education; Government Chief People Officer (Cabinet Office), Permanent Secretary, Department for Work & Pensions; and Director General, MI5. As set out in the Civil Service Senior Appointments Protocol, the First Civil Service Commissioner also sits on the SLC as a permanent member. There are currently no representatives from the Ministry of Justice on the SLC.
Civil Service Commissioners must chair all permanent competitions for posts at SCS Pay Band 4 (Permanent Secretary) and SCS Pay Band 3 (Director General) level. This requirement applies both to open (external) competitions and to Civil Service-wide (internal) competitions. Commissioners do not have involvement in appointments where an exception is granted, although these are reported to the Commission on a quarterly basis. The current appointments were made under exceptions due to the temporary nature of the arrangements. Any future permanent recruitment will follow the Civil Service Recruitment Principles and be chaired by a Civil Service Commissioner.
Asked by: Lord Foster of Bath (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Timpson on 22 September (HL10345), whether the Senior Leadership Committee included representatives from the Ministry of Justice; and whether the recruitment process involved the Civil Service Commission or the use of an exception under the Civil Service recruitment principles.
Answered by Lord Timpson - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The roles of Director General of Operations and Chief Operating Officer for Prisons are currently being filled on an interim basis. The recruitment position is unchanged from my reply of 22 September.
Senior Leadership Committee (SLC) membership is currently made up of: Permanent Secretary, Home Office (who serves as the Chair); Permanent Secretary, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero; Permanent Secretary, HM Treasury; Chief Executive of the Civil Service and Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government; Permanent Secretary, Department for Education; Government Chief People Officer (Cabinet Office), Permanent Secretary, Department for Work & Pensions; and Director General, MI5. As set out in the Civil Service Senior Appointments Protocol, the First Civil Service Commissioner also sits on the SLC as a permanent member. There are currently no representatives from the Ministry of Justice on the SLC.
Civil Service Commissioners must chair all permanent competitions for posts at SCS Pay Band 4 (Permanent Secretary) and SCS Pay Band 3 (Director General) level. This requirement applies both to open (external) competitions and to Civil Service-wide (internal) competitions. Commissioners do not have involvement in appointments where an exception is granted, although these are reported to the Commission on a quarterly basis. The current appointments were made under exceptions due to the temporary nature of the arrangements. Any future permanent recruitment will follow the Civil Service Recruitment Principles and be chaired by a Civil Service Commissioner.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the provisions in the Employment Rights Bill on backlogs in the employment tribunals.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Employment Rights Bill is part of the Government’s commitment to Make Work Pay. The Bill includes measures that strengthens the rights of workers, which we expect will increase demand in the Employment Tribunal.
To address rising demand in the Employment Tribunal, we are working to invest in tribunal productivity measures through the recruitment of additional judges, the deployment of legal officers, the development of modern case management systems and the use of remote hearing technology. This has delivered over 1,500 additional sitting days. The Lord Chancellor allocated 33,900 sitting days for the Employment Tribunals in the financial year 2025/26, the maximum allocation they are able to sit.
We do recognise that there are significant demand pressures on the Employment Tribunals and are therefore working with the judiciary, HMCTS and the Department for Business and Trade on any further actions needed to alleviate pressures on the Employment Tribunals, improve efficiency and reduce waiting times to ensure the Employment Tribunal is able to absorb the impact of the Employment Rights Bill whilst ensuring timely access to justice for claimants and respondents.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that magistrates receive training on (a) coercive control and (b) the longer-term impacts of domestic abuse; and whether any similar training is planned for the future.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
To preserve judicial independence, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Lady Chief Justice has the statutory responsibility for the training of the courts judiciary in England and Wales, fulfilled by the Judicial College.
Domestic abuse is a significant element of initial and ongoing training for magistrates and legal advisers. All magistrates complete induction training on appointment and when authorised in new jurisdictions, before they undertake sittings. Regular continuation training in relation to domestic abuse, in all its forms, is provided thereafter. Magistrates sitting in the family and criminal jurisdictions receive mandatory domestic abuse training. The training is trauma-informed and reflects the wide nature of domestic abuse including coercive and controlling behaviour.
The College regularly reviews its training to ensure it remains high quality and up to date, and reflects contemporary law, practice and procedure.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with Immigration and Asylum Tribunal Judges on the introduction of independent adjudicators to hear asylum appeals.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
It is standard practice not to comment on the specifics of discussions between ministers and the judiciary.
As would be expected, the Lord Chancellor has regular meetings with the Lady Chief Justice and other senior judges.
In line with constitutional conventions, discussions with the judiciary do not cover the merits of policy proposals and are limited to technical matters relating to the operation of the courts and the wider administration of justice.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many outstanding cases there have been in the Employment (a) Tribunal and (b) Appeal Tribunal in each of the last five years.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Data on open caseload for the Employment Tribunal and Employment Appeals Tribunal is published in Tribunals Statistics Quarterly and data to March 2025 can be found in table S_4 of the main tables here: Tribunals statistics quarterly: January to March 2025 - GOV.UK.
Figures for ET single claims, ET multiple claims and EAT claims are in columns H, J and K respectively.