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SOLICITOR-GENERAL
Acceptance of Pleas and the Prosecutor's Pledge
The Solicitor-General (Mr. Mike O'Brien): My right hon. Friend the Attorney-General has made the following written ministerial statement:
"The purpose of this ministerial statement is to inform the House that I am today publishing my revised Guidelines on acceptance of pleas and the prosecutors' role in the sentencing exercise; and launching the Prosecutor's Pledge. I am placing copies of both documents in the Library.
The new Guidelines develop and build on the previous Attorney-General's Guidelines on the acceptance of pleas published in 2000. They provide more detailed practical guidance for prosecutors particularly in relation to the sentencing hearing.
The Prosecutor's Pledge for the first time brings together in a single document, in the public domain, the level of service that victims can expect to receive from prosecutors. The 10 point pledge commitments will be applicable to all prosecuting authorities in due course, and will also apply to advocates instructed by the prosecution authorities. The Pledge will first be introduced by the CPS. Other prosecutors
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- will apply the principles set out in the Pledge to develop their own policies, adapting them as appropriate to meet the needs of their own particular cases and responsibilities".
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Regional Development Agencies
The Minister for Industry and the Regions (Alun Michael):
On 21 July I laid before Parliament the annual reports and accounts for England's eight Regional Development Agencies (RDAs) outside London for
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2004–05 and the RDAs' reported Tier 3 output results for 2004–05. Copies were placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
It has since been brought to my attention that the output figure for employment opportunities was reported inaccurately by Advantage West Midlands. Amended copies of the output results have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses, and are also available on the DTI website at: www.dti.gov.uk/rda/info. The correct figure is 11,760, which is above the Agency's target of 11,200. The incorrect figure given in July was 15,439.