Asked by: Helen Grant (Conservative - Maidstone and The Weald)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effect of community-based sentencing options on reducing the numbers of mothers on the prison estate and children in care; and if he will ensure that his Department's new female offenders strategy includes measures to prevent the separation of children from their mothers in cases where a mother's sentence is for a non-violent crime and for 12 months or less.
Answered by Phillip Lee
We are currently developing the female offender strategy and have considered the effectiveness of community sentences and custodial sentences for all women as part of that work. Custody should be the last resort and only imposed after the court has considered alternative sentences to be served in the community. We are committed to making sure that as many women as possible are effectively rehabilitated in the community to better protect the public and deliver better outcomes for female offenders and their families.
Asked by: Helen Grant (Conservative - Maidstone and The Weald)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to commence its review of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.
Asked by: Helen Grant (Conservative - Maidstone and The Weald)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which options the Government plans to assess on reducing the number of litigants in person as part of its review into the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
Since 2015, the Government has invested £5 million of funding to support litigants in person through a range of measures designed to provide practical support and information, as well as providing routes to free or more affordable legal advice services.
The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.
Asked by: Helen Grant (Conservative - Maidstone and The Weald)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which provisions of the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 the Government's plans to scrutinise in its post-implementation review.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.
We are aware that previous Ministers agreed to submit a post-legislative memorandum for the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act to Parliament and to begin a post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms shortly afterward. We are also aware that the Government has had a long-standing commitment to doing this review and publishing it by April 2018.