Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has reviewed the effectiveness of legislation relating to joint enterprise.

Joint enterprise is a complex area of law which is not set out in statute but evolves through case law. It is an important principle ensuring that those who act with others to commit crimes are held to account.

The Government is aware of concerns about the use of joint enterprise, and understands its importance, particularly in terms of the consequences that can result from convictions. The Crown Prosecution Service is collecting data on joint enterprise homicide/attempted homicide cases and will publish a report later this year. In addition, the Law Commission review of criminal appeals is considering the “out of time” appeals process which is an issue of relevance to historic joint enterprise cases decided before the 2016 case of Jogee.