Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to increase the number of RASSO trained judges and advocates in the West Mercia region.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We commissioned Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious measures to deliver swifter justice for victims, including for victims of sexual violence, in his Independent Review of Criminal Courts. This Review will make recommendations to ensure there is sufficient capacity within the courts to address the record Crown Court caseload, which this Government inherited, across all case types - including rape and other sexual offences. Work on Part 2 of the report, which is looking at how the criminal courts can operate as efficiently as possible, is underway. We expect it to be finalised this year.
Statutory responsibility for judicial training in the courts is held by the Lady Chief Justice. This responsibility is fulfilled by the Judicial College. All judges authorised to hear serious sexual offence (SSO) cases must complete the relevant induction training course before starting to sit and regular continuation training every three years. Presiding judges undertake an annual assessment of the business need for authorised SSO ticketed judges within their respective circuits and new approvals are decided by the senior judiciary.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Advocate Panel is a time limited list of quality assured advocates to undertake criminal prosecution advocacy for CPS. Positive changes made by the CPS to the application process in May 2024 have seen rape and serious sexual offence (RASSO) advocate Panel membership increase by 51%. This includes a 38% increase in advocates prosecuting on the Midlands Circuit. These advocates have received CPS accredited RASSO training within the last 3 years and can demonstrate the experience and ability to undertake RASSO cases.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will reform the Judicial Appointments Commission to ensure improved (a) transparency and (b) diversity in the appointments process.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The independent Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) has a statutory duty under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (CRA) to select candidates for judicial appointment solely on merit and to encourage diversity. Its processes are governed by the CRA and by the Judicial Appointments Regulations 2013. It keeps its selection processes under continual review to ensure they are transparent, fair, and attract talented candidates from a wide range of backgrounds. It publishes its annual report and accounts, independent reviews and appointments data is included in the annual judicial diversity statistics.
The Government is strongly committed to achieving a judiciary which better represents the diversity of the population. In the most recent year for which statistics are available (2023/24), 53% of candidates recommended for appointments to become judicial office holders by the JAC were women and 16% from ethnic minorities, contributing to a more diverse judiciary. The Ministry of Justice, as a member of the Judicial Diversity Forum, works closely with the judiciary, the Judicial Appointments Commission, the Legal Services Board and the three largest legal professions on actions to improve judicial diversity. The Forum’s 2025 action plan (https://judicialappointments.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Judicial-Diversity-Forum-Priorities-and-Actions-for-2025-Final.pdf) which was published in February, sets out our shared priorities.
Under the CRA, candidates for judicial office can complain to the JAC and subsequently to the independent Judicial Appointments and Conduct Ombudsman if they believe that their application for appointment has not been handled appropriately.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will have discussions with senior judges on maintaining political impartiality when making (a) professional and (b) personal comments in public.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Judges swear in the judicial oath to act "without fear or favour, affection or ill will". They are recognised and respected across the world for their independence, fairness and impartiality.
It is for the senior judiciary to give guidance on the standards and behaviour expected of judges, and the judiciary revised its Guide to Judicial Conduct in 2023. The Judicial Conduct Investigations Office exists to deal with complaints about the personal conduct of judicial office holders.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will ask the Sentencing Council to increase custodial sentences for people convicted of procuring child abuse images.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The maximum sentences available for criminal offences are set by Parliament and, for possession of indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child, the maximum sentence is 5 years’ imprisonment. For distributing, making or taking indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child, the maximum sentence is 10 years’ imprisonment.
The independent judiciary will determine the appropriate sentence in individual cases within the maximums set by Parliament, and in line with any relevant sentencing guidelines issued by the Sentencing Council for England and Wales.
Sentencing guidelines provide courts with guidance on factors that should be considered, which may affect the sentence given. The relevant guideline for possessing, distributing, and producing indecent child images can be found here: Possession of indecent photograph of child/ Indecent photographs of children – Sentencing
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) adults and (b) juveniles convicted of (i) downloading and (ii) procuring online child abuse images received suspended custodial sentences in the latest period for which figures are available.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of convictions at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.
Information on the number of suspended custodial sentences for adults and juveniles for the offence of possessing prohibited images of children is available within the published data. However, information on whether offenders were sentenced specifically for downloading or procuring child abuse images is not held by the Ministry of Justice, as this information is not recorded centrally in the Court Proceedings Database.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted for domestic abuse against men in the period 2022-2023 .
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of offenders prosecuted and convicted which can be filtered to specific offences. This can be obtained in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, which can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2023.
It is not possible to separately identify cases of domestic abuse, which will be recorded under the specific offences for which they are convicted, for example, intentional strangulation or suffocation. This information may be held on court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to reduce reoffending by military veterans who have served custodial sentences.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
HMPPS delivers a range of initiatives to support veterans. This includes the Veterans Activity Hubs at HMP Holme House and HMP Risley, which provide safe and supportive spaces for veterans, improving their wellbeing and confidence, and make their transition into the community more likely to succeed.
HMPPS also delivers services via many third sector organisations (including military charities such as SSAFA) who provide a prison in-reach service offering resettlement advice to veterans whilst in custody and guidance in preparation for release.
Across the prison estate, almost all prisons have a Veterans in Custody Support Officer, whose role is to identify prisoners who have served in the armed forces and provide tailored support to them, and many of these officers are veterans themselves.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to provide rehabilitation to military veterans serving custodial sentences.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
HMPPS delivers a range of initiatives to support veterans. This includes the Veterans Activity Hubs at HMP Holme House and HMP Risley, which provide safe and supportive spaces for veterans, improving their wellbeing and confidence, and make their transition into the community more likely to succeed.
HMPPS also delivers services via many third sector organisations (including military charities such as SSAFA) who provide a prison in-reach service offering resettlement advice to veterans whilst in custody and guidance in preparation for release.
Across the prison estate, almost all prisons have a Veterans in Custody Support Officer, whose role is to identify prisoners who have served in the armed forces and provide tailored support to them, and many of these officers are veterans themselves.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make it his policy to require coroners to keep records of whether the deceased is a military veteran when recording a verdict of suicide.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Government takes the welfare of Armed Forces veterans very seriously and we are committed to improving our understanding of the risk of suicide and its prevalence among veterans.
The Office of Veteran Affairs has been working with the Ministry of Defence and the Office for National Statistics to link and exploit administrative data held by the various organisations that will enable the tracking of veteran suicides without creating additional duties for coroners. This approach will ensure that the most complete picture of veteran suicides is available to coroners and the public. It is expected that the first annual statistics will be published in 2024.
There are currently no plans to require coroners to keep records of whether the deceased is an Armed Forces veteran when recording a conclusion of suicide. Where a coroner has been informed that the deceased person was a veteran and considers that information about veteran status is relevant to a suicide which is being investigated, they can seek information from the Defence Inquests Unit in the Ministry of Defence. How a coroner uses any information received is for them to determine.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will undertake a review of sentencing guidelines for defendants convicted of sexual offences against minors.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
Sentencing guidelines are developed by the Sentencing Council for England and Wales, which is independent of Parliament and Government.
The Sentencing Council recently consulted on revisions to its child sexual offences sentencing guidelines, which set out the approach courts should take when sentencing cases where no sexual activity takes places or the targeted child does not exist, for instance in police sting operations, as well as a new guideline for the offence of sexual communication with a child. The Council is currently analysing responses to the consultation, and it is anticipated that revised versions of the guidelines will be published next year.