Question to the Attorney General:

To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2024 to Question 8608 on Aiding and Abetting, what consideration the Crown Prosecution Service gives to a suspect’s level of (a) intention to assist or encourage and (b) contribution to the commission of an offence when making charging decisions using joint enterprise laws.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) guidance on secondary liability (Secondary Liability: charging decisions on principals and accessories | The Crown Prosecution Service (cps.gov.uk)) provides guidance to CPS prosecutors on what needs to be proved in respect of the secondary party’s participation in an offence.

The secondary party, by words or conduct, must encourage or assist the commission of the offence by another person, and must intend to do so.

Mere accidental presence at the scene of an offence or mere association with the principal offender or a group or gang will not alone be sufficient to prove that a secondary party participated in the offence.

If the offence requires a particular intent, the secondary party must intend to assist or encourage the other person to act with that intent.

The CPS guidance provides a number of scenarios to demonstrate the type and level of participation that may amount to assistance or encouragement.

The guidance also contains a section on intent (see “Mens rea – Intent”) that explains in detail how intent may be proved in practice, in relation to various types of scenarios.