Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average turn around time for the Office of the Public Guardian to register a Lasting Power of Attorney.
Answered by Lord Bellamy
It is currently taking the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) up to 20 weeks to register a lasting power of attorney (LPA), including a 4-week statutory waiting period to allow for objections.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take as a result of the European Commission's rejection of the UK's application to join the Lugano Convention.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar - Shadow Attorney General
The Government is aware of the European Commission’s notification that it is not in a position to give its consent to UK accession to the Lugano Convention 2007. However, we understand that member states have not yet been given an opportunity to formally vote on that position.
We are committed to ensuring cross-border legal disputes can be resolved smoothly, in the interests of families, consumers and businesses both in the UK and across Europe. We maintain that we meet the criteria for accession – it is open to countries outside the EU; all non-EU parties to Lugano support UK membership.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their response to the call in the report by the House of Lords Justice Sub-Committee of the Select Committee on the EU Brexit: justice for families, individuals and businesses? (7th Report, Session 2016–17, HL Paper 134) for them to publish a coherent plan for addressing the post-Brexit application of the so-called Brussels regime.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie - Shadow Minister (Justice)
The Government published its future partnership paper on cross-border civil judicial cooperation on 22 August 2017. This set out that an effective framework of civil judicial cooperation is an important part of the deep and special partnership we want to establish with the EU. The Government will therefore seek an agreement with the EU that allows for close and comprehensive cross-border civil judicial cooperation on a reciprocal basis, which reflects closely the substantive principles of cooperation under the current EU framework.
The paper also set out our intention to continue participation in those Hague Conventions we currently participate in by virtue of our membership of the EU, and to continue to participate in the Lugano Convention that, by virtue of our membership of the EU, forms the basis for the UK’s civil judicial cooperation with Norway, Iceland and Switzerland.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any new criminal offences have been introduced by secondary legislation in the last 15 years.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie - Shadow Minister (Justice)
This information can only be compiled at disproportionate cost.
As part of the coalition Government’s commitment to prevent the proliferation of unnecessary new criminal offences, the then Secretary of State for Justice established a Criminal Offences Gateway in June 2010 to scrutinise proposals to create new criminal offences. The Ministry of Justice also pledged to count the number of new criminal offences created each year across Government and to publish the resultant figures. Published statistics for the period June 2009 to May 2014 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/385537/new-criminal-offences-june-2009-may-2014.pdf. This published data distinguishes between offences created by primary and secondary legislation, but does not list the individual offences.
Following the termination of the Criminal Offences Gateway in December 2015, there is no longer a business need to collect data on new offences. As a result, this bulletin is no longer being produced.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which criminal offences have been introduced by secondary legislation in each of the last 10 years.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie - Shadow Minister (Justice)
This information can only be compiled at disproportionate cost.
As part of the coalition Government’s commitment to prevent the proliferation of unnecessary new criminal offences, the then Secretary of State for Justice established a Criminal Offences Gateway in June 2010 to scrutinise proposals to create new criminal offences. The Ministry of Justice also pledged to count the number of new criminal offences created each year across Government and to publish the resultant figures. Published statistics for the period June 2009 to May 2014 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/385537/new-criminal-offences-june-2009-may-2014.pdf. This published data distinguishes between offences created by primary and secondary legislation, but does not list the individual offences.
Following the termination of the Criminal Offences Gateway in December 2015, there is no longer a business need to collect data on new offences. As a result, this bulletin is no longer being produced.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 27 April (HL6891), when they will commence the appointment process for the position of chair of the Legal Services Board which will became vacant at the end of April.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie - Shadow Minister (Justice)
The post of the Chair of the Legal Services Board was advertised on the Cabinet Office’s website for public appointment vacancies on Thursday 19 October.