Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Section 133 (1ZA) of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 on people wrongly convicted of crimes.

Section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act provides for the Secretary of State to pay compensation to an individual who has suffered a miscarriage of justice, subject to meeting the statutory test. This is administrated by the Miscarriages of Justice Application Service (MOJAS). Annual data is published on MOJAS setting out number of applications and who is eligible for compensation.

The Law Commission is currently undertaking a review of the criminal appeals process, including the test for compensation payable for miscarriages of justice under section 133, and we look forward to their report in 2026.