Asked by: Ben Goldsborough (Labour - South Norfolk)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many adult men with no previous convictions were taken into immediate custody from (a) Crown and (b) magistrates courts for sentences of (i) below six months and (ii) six months and over in each police force area in England and Wales in 2022-23; and what the offence classification was in each of those cases.
Answered by Heidi Alexander - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Information on the numbers of adult men with no previous convictions who were taken into immediate custody from the Crown Courts and the Magistrates courts for sentences of below six months, and six months and over, are provided below. It is not possible to provide breakdowns by police force area because, due to low numbers, this would risk identification of the individuals concerned. Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for our independent courts, taking into account the circumstances of each case.
Number of adult(1) male offenders with no previous convictions(2) sentenced to immediate custody by court type(3), sentence length(4)(5), and offence type; England and Wales(6), 2022-23(7):
Offence type8 | Crown Court | Magistrates Court | ||
Less than 6 months | 6 months or more | Less than 6 months | 6 months or more | |
Violence against the person | 31 | 950 | 69 | 40 |
Sexual offences | 16 | 1,347 | 23 | 32 |
Robbery | 1 | 118 | 0 | 5 |
Theft Offences | 11 | 173 | 97 | 18 |
Criminal damage and arson | 3 | 22 | 2 | 3 |
Drug offences | 71 | 1,980 | 18 | 87 |
Possession of weapons | 12 | 84 | 81 | 31 |
Public order offences | 11 | 97 | 28 | 8 |
Miscellaneous crimes against society | 57 | 429 | 50 | 27 |
Fraud offences | 5 | 109 | 7 | 3 |
Summary offences excluding motoring | 22 | 16 | 161 | 7 |
Summary motoring offences | 1 | 2 | 54 | 1 |
All offences | 241 | 5,327 | 590 | 262 |
Source: Ministry of Justice extract of the Police National Computer(9)
Notes:
1) Aged 18 or over at time of sentence.
2) Counting the number of male offenders who were convicted in court for the first time.
3) Includes crown and magistrates’ courts cases, where this information is recorded on the PNC.
4) 6 months has been assumed to be 180 days.
5) Excludes cases where the sentence length is not known.
6) England and Wales include all 43 police force areas plus the British Transport Police.
7) Includes financial year beginning April 2022 to March 2023.
8) For more detailed information on the offences included in each classification see the Offence Group Classifications file at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2023
9) The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information was provided to the Prime Minister on the public finances prior to taking office; whether he has received any additional information since taking office; and what his policy is on the provision of information to prospective future governments prior to elections.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The process for access talks is set out in the Cabinet Manual. Access talks are initiated with permission from the Prime Minister of the day and are confidential.
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place between Cabinet ministers and officials is not shared publicly.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information was provided to her on the public finances prior to taking office; whether she has received any additional information since taking office; and what her policy is on the provision of information to prospective future governments prior to elections.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The process for access talks is set out in the Cabinet Manual. Access talks are initiated with permission from the Prime Minister of the day and are confidential.
It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place between Cabinet ministers and officials is not shared publicly.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if her Department will take steps to restore the level of funding allocated to international development and aid projects to 0.7% of GDP.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
This Government is committed to restoring ODA spending at the level of 0.7 per cent of GNI as soon as fiscal circumstances allow. The Government will set out its approach to the House in due course.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to repeal the Pensions Increase (Pension Scheme for Keir Starmer QC) Regulations 2013.
Answered by Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The 2013 regulations were introduced to ensure the Director of Public Prosecutions’ pension scheme is uprated in line with other public service pension schemes. There are no plans to repeal the regulations.
Asked by: Kate Dearden (Labour (Co-op) - Halifax)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police stations have closed in Halifax since May 2010; and what the (a) name and (b) postcode was of each station.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office does not centrally collect data on the number of police station closures and has not collected this data previously.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the Government's policy was on external by default for recruitment to senior civil service roles by (a) department and (b) organisation on (i) 30 May 2024 and (ii) 23 July 2024.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The Civil Service advertises all SCS vacancies on the principle of External by Default.
External by Default means that vacancies will be open to external candidates outside the Civil Service, as well as existing civil servants, unless an exception applies. Use of exemptions for any post must be approved by the Departmental Minister or Permanent Secretary in Non-Ministerial Departments.
This policy applies to all Ministerial departments, Non-Ministerial departments, Executive Agencies and Crown Non-Departmental Public Bodies.
This policy was applicable on 30 May 2024 and 23 July 2024.
On the 30 May 2024, in accordance with the General Election Guidance 2024, any appointments that required approval by the Prime Minister, and other Civil Service and public appointments likely to prove sensitive (including those where Ministers have delegated decisions to officials or other authorities) were frozen until after the election, except in exceptional circumstances (General Election Guidance, Section H, para 1-4).
Where an appointment was required to be made, because the role was urgent or critical, and including where necessary sensitive SCS positions, the role could be filled on a temporary basis by exception. The principle of external by default for all SCS recruitment was maintained during the pre-election period. Any temporary appointments were subject to approval via the exemption process (Civil Service Recruitment Framework 2022). During the pre-election period, approval for urgent exemptions to external by default could be made by Permanent Secretaries where Ministerial availability was limited.
Responsibility for adhering to pre-election guidance in relation to recruitment sat with the hiring department.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of SEND provision in Surrey and Hampshire; and what steps she plans to take to support local authorities in those areas to improve delivery of SEND services.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The department is continuing to support and challenge Surrey and Hampshire to improve the delivery of special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) services.
The last local area SEND inspection by Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for Surrey was in September 2023. The department’s regional team has put in place systems to track outcomes against the areas for improvement that were identified by inspectors and to track the progress made by children and young people with SEND. Surrey County Council are committed to working closely with the department to improve services.
Surrey County Council entered into a Safety Valve agreement with the department in March 2022. Safety Valve agreements were established under the previous government with the aim of improving the effectiveness of local authority high needs systems and ensure their long-term financial sustainability.
Hampshire were last inspected under the previous Ofsted and CQC framework in March 2020. As with all local areas, the department has continued to provide support to Hampshire through a regional case lead, who seeks regular assurances on the adequacy of SEND provision. Hampshire will be assessed under the new Ofsted and CQC Area Inspection Framework, with all local authorities due to be inspected by the end of 2027.
Hampshire is taking part in the Delivering Better Value (DBV) in SEND Programme. The DBV in SEND Programme, which is currently under review, was established under the previous government with the aim of helping local authorities provide more effective SEND services by meeting the needs of children and young people at an early stage and with the right level of support.
Asked by: Jess Asato (Labour - Lowestoft)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many exemptions to the two-child benefit limit due to rape have been (a) requested and (b) granted since that exemption was introduced.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The requested information is not available. However, figures are published showing the number of households in receipt of an exception for children likely to have been born as a result of non-consensual conception, which for this purpose includes rape or where the claimant was in a controlling or coercive relationship with the child’s other biological parent at the time of conception. Table2, provides this information.
The full statistics tables and supporting narrative are published here: Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Welsh Government on the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK Government has had regular discussions with the Welsh Government on a range of issues as part of our determination to reset relations with the devolved governments. We want to work collaboratively with the Welsh Government as we deliver our national missions and our manifesto commitments for Wales.
Many of the recommendations of the report are reflected in our manifesto commitments to Wales, including enhanced protection for Welsh devolution, strengthened intergovernmental working, better access to economic resources for Wales and enhanced powers for the Senedd and Welsh Government.