Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent steps his Department has taken to help tackle delays at Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer
It is important that the inquest process is as swift and efficient as possible to avoid additional distress for bereaved families at such a difficult time in their lives.
Whilst the Ministry of Justice is responsible for coroner law and policy, this Department does not have operational responsibility for coroner services as they are a local service, funded and administered by individual local authorities. However, we are keen to understand the factors underlying the length of time for the completion of inquests, and to provide support where possible and appropriate.
To that end, we have introduced a raft of statutory measures to help streamline coroner processes, and intend to take forward further measures when Parliamentary time allows.
In addition, on 9 September 2024, the Government is implementing the statutory Medical Examiner scheme which, by providing a more robust framework for the scrutiny of cause of death, is expected to decrease the number of deaths which are unnecessarily referred to the coroner, thereby reducing pressure on coroner services.
I am also engaging with Ministerial colleagues to identify and implement an action plan to address the complex issues underlying the shortage of coronial pathology provision, which contributes significantly to inquest delays. As a first step, the Ministry of Justice is undertaking a review of the statutory fees for coronial pathology work.
I have recently discussed this and wider issues around inquest delay with the Justice Committee in the context of its follow up Inquiry into the Coroner Service and look forward to receiving its recommendations in due course.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Coroners Courts Support Service on taking steps to improve the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent steps his Department has taken to improve the (a) practical and (b) emotional support provided to (i) families and (ii) other witnesses attending the Coroners’ Courts.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Government is grateful for the important and valuable work that the Coroners Courts Support Service (CCSS) does in providing practical and emotional support for bereaved families in many coroner areas across England and Wales. This work is key to the Government’s objective of ensuring that the bereaved are placed at the heart of the inquest process.
We are keen to see support services in every coroner’s court in England and Wales, subject to affordability. Following the Justice Committee’s recommendation in the 2021 report on its Inquiry into the Coroner Service, the Ministry of Justice is taking forward an engagement plan, including with the CCSS, to better understand the support services currently available in coroners’ courts in England and Wales, and what is needed going forward. We aim to complete this assessment in as soon as practicable.
We are also undertaking a factual update of our Guide to Coroner Services for Bereaved People, which will be followed by a more fundamental review to take account of forthcoming changes which will impact on coroner services, including implementation of the statutory Medical Examiner scheme and the Independent Public Advocate. The review will also look at ways of improving the accessibility of the Guide, so that bereaved people are better able to engage with it at what is inevitably a very difficult time in their lives.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth are serving (a) Imprisonment for Public Protection and (b) Detention for Public Protection sentences.
Answered by Edward Argar
The number and proportion of prisoners in HMP Wandsworth serving Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) and Detention for Public Protection sentences (DPP), as at 31 March 2024, are set out in the table below.
Sentence type | Number of prisoners | Proportion of the total population at HMP Wandsworth |
IPP | 10 | 0.7% |
DPP | 0 | - |
Please note:
(1) IPP prisoners include both unreleased IPP prisoners and recalled IPP prisoners.
(2) DPP is the youth equivalent of the IPP sentence, given to those aged under 18 at the time of conviction.
(3) The figures in this table have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
We have taken significant action through the Victims and Prisoners Bill to curtail IPP and DPP licence periods to give offenders the opportunity to move on with their lives. In addition to these changes, the actions this Government is taking are working; the number of prisoners serving the IPP sentence, including those serving DPP sentences, who have never been released now stands at 1,180 as of March 2024, down from more than 6000 in 2012.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of foreign national prisoners at HMP Wandsworth are (a) post-sentence awaiting deportation and (b) serving current sentences.
Answered by Edward Argar
The removal of Foreign National Offenders (FNOs) is a Government priority: the Ministry of Justice continues to work closely with the Home Office to maximise the number of deportations.
As of 31 March, 13 FNOs were held under immigration powers after their conditional release date at HMP Wandsworth, while deportation arrangements were being made by the Home Office. This represents 1.8 per cent of the prison’s population. On the same date, 90 FNOs were serving sentences in HMP Wandsworth. This represents 12.8 per cent of the population.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth have been recalled to custody having been released as part of the early release scheme.
Answered by Edward Argar
Data on End of Custody Supervised Licence will be published when sufficient robust and comprehensive data is available. To support orderly release, its publication will be announced through the gov.uk release calendar.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth have been recalled to custody while on release on temporary licence.
Answered by Edward Argar
We are unable to answer the question about the number of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth that were recalled to custody while on release on temporary licence (ROTL). HMP Wandsworth is a category B, closed prison. There is no expectation that closed prisons deliver ROTL even though some of the population are eligible. Information on which prisoners were recalled to other prisons before moving to HMP Wandsworth is not held centrally. To obtain the data would involve a manual interrogation of prison records which would result in a disproportionate cost to the department.
ROTL from open prisons is preferred as open prisons are set up and have been resourced to deliver ROTL, with the right staff, processes, layout, and general population (i.e., everyone is eligible), and there is an expectation that they deliver ROTL.
Offenders released on temporary licence are subject to strict conditions and risk assessment. Any breaches can result in more time behind bars. By providing opportunities to work, learn and build family ties, temporary release from prison reduces the chances of reoffending. Evidence shows the vast majority abide by their temporary release conditions, with a compliance rate of over 99%.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth are awaiting dispersal to another category of prison following an assessment.
Answered by Edward Argar
HMP Wandsworth’s main function is to hold unsentenced prisoners while their cases progress through the courts. Once prisoners are sentenced, they are categorised and can then be transferred to a prison with an appropriate security category if required. On 02 May 2024, there were 313 prisoners at Wandsworth who had been categorised as B, C or D, 20% of Wandsworth’s total population. The number of these who are currently awaiting transfer is not centrally collated, as some will be due for release from Wandsworth itself and some will be currently unable to transfer for other reasons such as completing programmes or medical conditions.
There are complex and wide-ranging issues involved in transferring and locating prisoners, and allocation decisions must reflect both the specific needs and circumstances of the prisoner, including their security assessment, as well as the operating environment and range of services at the receiving prison. How these considerations apply in individual cases is not recorded in centrally collated data.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of prisoners at HMP Wandsworth who have been sentenced are awaiting prison category assessment.
Answered by Edward Argar
As of Monday 29 April 2024, 54 prisoners at HMP Wandsworth who had been sentenced were awaiting prison category assessment. This represents 3.6 per cent of the prison’s total population and 15.9 per cent of sentenced offenders at the prison.
Categorisation reviews ensure that, throughout their sentences, prisoners are assigned to the security category most appropriate for managing their risk. An initial security category assessment is conducted within 10 working days of sentencing, to facilitate transfer to an appropriate prison.