Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much and what proportion of fines issued to water companies were uncollected in each year since 2010.
Answered by Mike Freer
The Ministry of Justice does hold data on uncollected fines. However, we do not hold a list of all existing and previous water companies and would need to be supplied with this in order to conduct a search.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average waiting time was for a rape trial to begin in each year since 2010.
Answered by Edward Argar
The average waiting times of defendants dealt with in rape trial cases where a not guilty plea was entered in the Crown Court can be found in the below table with annual data from 2014 to 2022. Data prior to 2014 is not available.
Year | Average waiting times (weeks) of defendants dealt with in rape trial cases where a not guilty plea was entered in the Crown Court | |
Median | Mean | |
2014 | 27.6 | 29.5 |
2015 | 28.9 | 31.8 |
2016 | 28.0 | 30.9 |
2017 | 28.8 | 31.5 |
2018 | 29.6 | 32.9 |
2019 | 26.7 | 30.1 |
2020 | 30.6 | 32.4 |
2021 | 41.0 | 44.8 |
2022 | 39.7 | 44.4 |
Notes:
Despite recent setbacks caused by the pandemic and the criminal barrister strike, we continue to make significant investments that will support the reduction of the caseload in its totality.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the (a) average waiting time for community payback to commence one an individual has been sentenced and (b) the total number of people waiting to undergo community payback in each year since 2010.
Answered by Damian Hinds
a) The average waiting time for community payback to commence once an individual has been sentenced for years 2022/23 was 32.21 days.
b) The table below shows the number of UPW requirements waiting to undergo the first work session of their community payback requirement since 2017/18.
2022/2023 | 2021/2022 | 2020/2021 | 2019/2020 | 2018/2019 | 2017/2018 |
1922 | 1621 | 412 | 70 | 1 | 1 |
Due to the way data is recorded, we cannot provide relevant or comparable data prior to the 2017/18 for part b).
While due care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the data, as with any large administrative data source the possibility of errors cannot be eliminated. This data was sourced from nDelius; while data has been assured as much as practical, as with any large administrative dataset data should not be assumed to be accurate to the last value presented.
This Government has committed to invest an additional £93 million in Community Payback over the next three years to increase the number of unpaid hours worked, focusing on outdoor projects that help to improve public spaces, ensuring that people can see justice being done.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged 18 and over are being held in young offender institutions for people under the age of 18.
Answered by Damian Hinds
Young people who begin their sentences in the youth custodial estate, because they are under 18 at the time of sentencing, do not automatically transfer to the adult estate on reaching their eighteenth birthday. As of June 2023, 148 young people aged 18 were being accommodated in young offender institutions.
Custody should always be a last resort for children. We have made great strides to reduce the numbers of children in the youth justice system. The most recent publication of Youth Justice Statistics showed the 20/21 population fell by 19% compared to the previous year and was 77% lower than the population for the year ending March 2012.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison wings closed (a) permanently and (b) temporarily due to staff shortages in each year since 2010.
Answered by Damian Hinds
Since 2010, there have been no permanent reductions in prison capacity due solely to staff shortages.
Alongside issues such as safety, decency, and stability, staffing levels have been one factor in decisions to temporarily close wings between 2010-2022, although decisions during this period cannot be attributed solely or principally to staffing levels. All wings temporarily closed during this period have been returned to use.
In May 2022, HMPPS introduced a Strategic Enhanced Resourcing Support process to authorise capacity reductions due to staffing levels where other mitigations are insufficient. Since the introduction of the process there have been a total of 6 temporary prison wing closures across 4 prisons (HMPs Wayland, Bullingdon, Woodhill and Swaleside) due to stability concerns linked to acute resourcing issues. At present, 2 wing closures remain in place at HMPs Woodhill and Swaleside.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the audit findings set out on page 7 of the National Audit Office's report entitled Ministry of Justice Departmental Overview 2021-22, published in January 2023, if he will make an estimate of the total number of losses of more than £300,000 by his Department in each financial year since 2010.
Answered by Mike Freer
The losses greater than £300,000 are disclosed in the MOJ annual report and accounts each year. The accounts are published on gov.uk. The links below take you to each set of accounts. Page numbers for the losses disclosure is shown below. The losses for 2022-23 will be published when the MOJ Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23 is laid later this year.
Year | Page number | Link to accounts |
2021-22 | Page 118 | |
2020-21 | Page 123 | |
2019-20 | Page 130 | |
2018-19 | Page 100 | |
2017-18 | Page 85 | |
2016-17 | Page 77 | |
2015-16 | Page 69 | |
2014-15 | Page 113 | |
2013-14 | Page 117 | |
2012-13 | Page 139 | |
2011-12 | Page 141 | |
2010-11 | Page 170 |
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of court trials for (a) rape, (b) sexual assault, (c) violence against a person, (d) murder, (e) theft, (f) possession of weapons and (g) fraud have been delayed each year since 2010.
Answered by Mike Freer
We have interpreted your request as being for ineffective trials, which is where the trial does not commence on the due date and requires rescheduling. This could be due to a variety of reasons, such as the absence of a defendant or a witness or adjournment requests from either the prosecution or defence.
The tables attached set out the data held by the Ministry of Justice on ineffective trials for each offence type, in volume and against the total listed trials for that offence type.
Crown Court data is available from 2014 onwards.
The Covid-19 pandemic affected the Crown Courts’ ability to effectively list trials. The ineffective trial rate notably increased in 2020, primarily due to increases in defendant illness or absence, and overlisting (55% of all ineffective trials were for these reasons combined).
Across 2022, the proportion of ineffective trials in the Crown Court for all offences increased significantly as a result of the impact of the Criminal Bar Assocation (CBA) action.
‘Lack of defence advocate availability’ was the largest reason for all ineffective trials throughout 2022 (35%) and accounted for 22% (484 trials) in Q4 2022 once CBA action had ended, down from 67% (2,498 trials) in the previous quarter recorded during the barristers’ strikes. The CBA action ended in October 2022.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what data his Department holds on the percentage of fraud cases which did not proceed due to a victim or witness no longer supporting the case for prosecution on the day of trial in each year since 2010.
Answered by Edward Argar
The percentage of cases where prosecution offers no evidence because the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution for theft, fraud, robbery and possession of weapons offence can be found in the below table.
The table details the cases in which the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution on the day of trial (%) by selected offence group, England and Wales, 2014-2023 (data for 2023 covers only the period from January to March, the latest available).
Year | All offences | Robbery | Theft offences | Possession of weapons | Fraud offences |
2014 | 2.1% | 3.1% | 2.0% | 3.8% | 0.5% |
2015 | 1.8% | 3.1% | 2.1% | 2.6% | 0.5% |
2016 | 1.9% | 3.4% | 2.6% | 2.9% | 0.5% |
2017 | 2.0% | 3.8% | 2.3% | 3.2% | 1.0% |
2018 | 1.9% | 3.3% | 2.0% | 3.2% | 0.4% |
2019 | 1.9% | 2.8% | 2.1% | 3.0% | 0.4% |
2020 | 1.7% | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 1.0% |
2021 | 1.5% | 3.1% | 2.5% | 1.8% | 0.7% |
2022 | 1.4% | 3.0% | 2.4% | 1.4% | 0.2% |
2023 | 1.5% | 3.7% | 2.4% | 2.1% | 0.7% |
The data presented covers trials which do not go ahead on the listed trial data as the "prosecution offers no evidence because the witness/victim no longer supports prosecution". This is measured as a proportion of all listed trials in that period, excluding trial vacations.
The data is first published as part of the National Statistics series ‘Criminal Court Statistics Quarterly’, latest data available to March 2023. The data is only available from 2014 onwards.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what percentage of robbery cases were ended where a victim or witness no longer supported the case for prosecution on the day of trial in each year since 2010.
Answered by Edward Argar
The percentage of cases where prosecution offers no evidence because the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution for theft, fraud, robbery and possession of weapons offence can be found in the below table.
The table details the cases in which the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution on the day of trial (%) by selected offence group, England and Wales, 2014-2023 (data for 2023 covers only the period from January to March, the latest available).
Year | All offences | Robbery | Theft offences | Possession of weapons | Fraud offences |
2014 | 2.1% | 3.1% | 2.0% | 3.8% | 0.5% |
2015 | 1.8% | 3.1% | 2.1% | 2.6% | 0.5% |
2016 | 1.9% | 3.4% | 2.6% | 2.9% | 0.5% |
2017 | 2.0% | 3.8% | 2.3% | 3.2% | 1.0% |
2018 | 1.9% | 3.3% | 2.0% | 3.2% | 0.4% |
2019 | 1.9% | 2.8% | 2.1% | 3.0% | 0.4% |
2020 | 1.7% | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 1.0% |
2021 | 1.5% | 3.1% | 2.5% | 1.8% | 0.7% |
2022 | 1.4% | 3.0% | 2.4% | 1.4% | 0.2% |
2023 | 1.5% | 3.7% | 2.4% | 2.1% | 0.7% |
The data presented covers trials which do not go ahead on the listed trial data as the "prosecution offers no evidence because the witness/victim no longer supports prosecution". This is measured as a proportion of all listed trials in that period, excluding trial vacations.
The data is first published as part of the National Statistics series ‘Criminal Court Statistics Quarterly’, latest data available to March 2023. The data is only available from 2014 onwards.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Streatham and Croydon North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of theft cases in which the victim or witness no longer supported the prosecution were stopped on the day of trial in each year since 2010.
Answered by Edward Argar
The percentage of cases where prosecution offers no evidence because the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution for theft, fraud, robbery and possession of weapons offence can be found in the below table.
The table details the cases in which the victim or witness no longer supports prosecution on the day of trial (%) by selected offence group, England and Wales, 2014-2023 (data for 2023 covers only the period from January to March, the latest available).
Year | All offences | Robbery | Theft offences | Possession of weapons | Fraud offences |
2014 | 2.1% | 3.1% | 2.0% | 3.8% | 0.5% |
2015 | 1.8% | 3.1% | 2.1% | 2.6% | 0.5% |
2016 | 1.9% | 3.4% | 2.6% | 2.9% | 0.5% |
2017 | 2.0% | 3.8% | 2.3% | 3.2% | 1.0% |
2018 | 1.9% | 3.3% | 2.0% | 3.2% | 0.4% |
2019 | 1.9% | 2.8% | 2.1% | 3.0% | 0.4% |
2020 | 1.7% | 2.5% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 1.0% |
2021 | 1.5% | 3.1% | 2.5% | 1.8% | 0.7% |
2022 | 1.4% | 3.0% | 2.4% | 1.4% | 0.2% |
2023 | 1.5% | 3.7% | 2.4% | 2.1% | 0.7% |
The data presented covers trials which do not go ahead on the listed trial data as the "prosecution offers no evidence because the witness/victim no longer supports prosecution". This is measured as a proportion of all listed trials in that period, excluding trial vacations.
The data is first published as part of the National Statistics series ‘Criminal Court Statistics Quarterly’, latest data available to March 2023. The data is only available from 2014 onwards.