Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have become unemployed in each region of the United Kingdom since 4 July 2024.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The number of people who have become unemployed in each region of the United Kingdom can be found here: HI00 Regional labour market: headline Labour Force Survey indicators for all regions - Office for National Statistics
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the proportion of Single Justice Procedure cases where the defendant did not respond to the notice and was convicted in absence.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice does not hold data on the number of defendants who failed to respond to a Single Justice Procedure (SJP) notice and were therefore convicted in absence. Information and statistics on plea response for SJP cases is published here: Statistics in development – Single Justice Procedures – GOV.UK.
Defendant engagement is a key part of delivering fair justice. The Ministry of Justice continues to consider ways to support and encourage participation in the SJP process which is why we recently consulted on how the process can be improved. We will set out our plans shortly.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to mandate the update the UK Food Security Report annually.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK Food Security Report is published once every three years, fulfilling the duty in the Agriculture Act 2020. The next one will be published in 2027.
On 15 July 2025 the Government announced that it is committing to a new annual food security statistics publication to be published in the years between the triennial UK Food Security Report, starting this year. It will be a more frequent and focused publication, designed to ensure that key UK food security analysis is made public in order to capture emerging trends, and to support both policymakers and the public.
This new annual publication is a separate product to the UK Food Security Report and is not fulfilling the legislative duty.
Asked by: Neil Shastri-Hurst (Conservative - Solihull West and Shirley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that Single Justice Procedure notices are (a) served effectively and (b) received by the intended recipient.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Prosecutors using the Single Justice Procedure (SJP) are responsible for the service of SJP notices and these are presently served by first class post or by email. The Ministry of Justice does not have supervisory functions over SJP prosecutors, and it is the responsibility of the courts and the independent judiciary, to satisfy themselves that SJP notices have been served in accordance with the rules.
If a defendant is not aware of the proceedings they can make a statutory declaration which revokes the conviction, and they will then be required to submit a formal written response to the original SJP notice so that the process begins again.
The Government acknowledges the criticisms and shortcomings in the operation of the SJP and recognises the importance of ensuring that the SJP is accessible and fair to all defendants. That is why we launched a consultation on the oversight and regulation of private prosecutors which included a chapter on the SJP. The consultation closed on 8 May and work is ongoing to analyse the responses received and look at ways to reform the SJP which improves safeguards and efficiency in the process.