Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many successful prosecutions there have been in the last 12 months for smuggling illegal substances into prisons in England.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Ministry of Justice does not hold information on the number of successful prosecutions for the smuggling of illegal substances into prisons. These offences are dealt with under section 40 of the Prison Act 1952 which deals with someone who brings, throws or otherwise conveys a List A article into or out of a prison. List A includes controlled drugs, but it also includes other articles including offensive weapons, explosives and firearms or ammunition. The offence code used by HM Courts and Tribunals Service is not specific enough to establish the number of offences that are related only to conveying illegal substances.
The most up to date 12 month data held for List A conveyance successful prosecutions is for 12 months up to December 2020 and there were 345 successful prosecutions in this timeframe.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish their review of the Vagrancy Act 1824.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
The Government is clear that no one should be criminalised simply for having nowhere to live and the time has come to reconsider the Vagrancy Act.
Work is ongoing to look at this complex issue and it is important that we look carefully at all options.
We will update on our findings in due course.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish a consultation paper on reforming the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to facilitate small payments by people who lack capacity.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The proposals for consultation are being considered and I hope we will be able to update imminently.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they plan to have with the Serious Fraud Office about reports of British companies engaging in bribery overseas.
Answered by Lord Stewart of Dirleton - Advocate General for Scotland
The SFO is an independent law enforcement agency, superintended by the Attorney General’s Office. As set out in the Framework Agreement between the two organisations there are regular meetings between the Law Officers and the Director of the SFO to discuss both the SFO performance at an organisational level and to provide an oversight of high-profile casework.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of allegations in the BBC’s Panorama programme on 13 September that British American Tobacco paid a bribe to the then President of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe.
Answered by Lord Stewart of Dirleton - Advocate General for Scotland
Following a three-year investigation into British American Tobacco, in January 2021 the SFO determined that this case did not meet the evidential tests as defined in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. As with all cases that fail this first limb of the Code, it was therefore not in the public interest to continue with the investigation.
The SFO is aware of the allegations made in the BBC’s Panorama programme in September 2021.
The SFO continues to assist its international law enforcement partners with ongoing investigations related to this matter, and will assess any new material on its merits, as with any allegation of serious fraud, bribery or corruption. The SFO does not disclose the actions it takes to assess allegations.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Baroness Penn on 19 July (HL Deb col 4), how many retired pensioners have been issued with pre-payment cards.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The Department of Work and Pensions does not offer pre-paid cards. The main method of paying customers is into a standard bank, building society or credit union account. However, there are exceptions in limited circumstances.
The Department currently provides two Payment Exception Services which allow customers access to their payments. These are Her Majesty’s Government Payment Exception Service (HMG PES) and the Post Office Card account.
The Payment Exception Service is aimed at those customers who are unbanked and are either unable to open or use a bank account. It is designed for access to cash only. The contract expires 30 September 2021, but a similar procured new Payment Exception Service will replace HMG PES.
The Post Office Card Account is a basic deposit service for benefits and pensions, delivered by Post Office Limited on behalf of the Department. This service is due to end and customers will either convert to a standard bank, building society or credit union account. Those customers who are unable to open or use an account will be migrated to the new Payment Exception Service on a staged basis from August 2021.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many associated Fee Waivers the Court of Protection has received in respect of Child Trust Fund applications; and how many have been granted.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Court of Protection has received fifteen applications since August 2020 where the assets included a Child Trust Fund. Of the fifteen applications received, thirteen have resulted in a deputy being appointed. The remaining two applications resulted in ‘one off’ orders. In four cases, a Child Trust Fund was the sole asset and the court fees were waived.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications that have been received by the Court of Protection in respect of Child Trust Funds have resulted in a Deputy being appointed.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Court of Protection has received fifteen applications since August 2020 where the assets included a Child Trust Fund. Of the fifteen applications received, thirteen have resulted in a deputy being appointed. The remaining two applications resulted in ‘one off’ orders. In four cases, a Child Trust Fund was the sole asset and the court fees were waived.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications have been received by the Court of Protection where the only asset is a Child Trust Fund.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Court of Protection has received fifteen applications since August 2020 where the assets included a Child Trust Fund. Of the fifteen applications received, thirteen have resulted in a deputy being appointed. The remaining two applications resulted in ‘one off’ orders. In four cases, a Child Trust Fund was the sole asset and the court fees were waived.
Asked by: Lord Young of Cookham (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much was paid in compensation to beneficiaries of Disability Living Allowance because of financial abuse by their appointees, for the latest year for which figures are available.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
Where an allegation of financial abuse is confirmed, that is, that the DLA received by the appointee has not been used in the best interests of the claimant, the appointment is revoked. However, compensation is not paid.