Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, with reference to the guidance issued by the Crown Prosecution Service on 4 November 2021 entitled Gang related offences - Decision making in, whether she has made an assessment of the potential effect of the guidance on the use of the term gang by prosecutors during proceedings.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) guidance urges caution about the use of the word ‘gang’, explaining how it can properly be deployed in a prosecution, where substantiated by the evidence and relevant to a matter in issue in the proceedings. In drafting the guidance, the CPS assessed the potential effect of using ‘gang’ in proceedings and identified that the term is used in legislation and by criminal justice partners. The guidance clearly sets out that, given the negative connotations of the term ‘gang’, prosecutors should not refer to a group as a ‘gang’ in proceedings unless there is evidence to support the assertion. However, prosecutors must also ensure that where there is admissible evidence of gang membership, the case is put on a basis that reflects the often very serious gravity of the offending.