Exhumation
Iain Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many exhumation licences were issued for archaeological excavations in each year since 1 January 2007; how many such applications were refused; and for what reason each such application was refused; [164416]
(2) on how many occasions his Department has withdrawn and not reissued exhumation licences as a sole consequence of errors by officials in his Department since 1 January 2007; [164418]
(3) how many exhumation licences his Department has issued in each year since 1 January 2007; and what proportion of such licences did not relate to exhumations within public cemeteries. [164419]
Mrs Grant: The number of licences to exhume single sets of buried human remains and to exhume buried human remains for archaeological purposes issued in each year since 2007 are set out in the following table. We are not aware that the Department has withdrawn any exhumation licences because of errors by officials without subsequently issuing a correct licence to replace the defective one.
| Single exhumation licences | Archaeological exhumation licences | |
It would not be possible to identify whether or not each licence related to a public cemetery without incurring disproportionate cost as each licence would need to be checked.
Archaeological licence applications are not refused unless the application is to exhume from a former burial ground to enable development work to take place, in which case there will instead be an order issued under the Disused Burial Grounds Act 1884 and the Disused Burial Grounds (Amendment) Act 1981, or where the remains are to be exhumed from consecrated ground and reinterred within consecrated ground, in which case authority from the Church of England in the form of a Faculty is required instead. We do not keep records of the number of these cases.
Fines
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many fines were (a) issued by the courts and (b) collected in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012. [165784]
Mrs Grant: The numbers of financial imposition accounts opened, and closed along with the values imposed and collected and the total collections are set out in the following table:
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| Number of financial imposition accounts opened April to March | Number of financial impositions that were opened in the period April to March that were closed in the same period | Value of financial impositions April to March (£) | Value of financial impositions that were imposed April to March that were collected in the same period (£) | Total value of financial impositions collected in the year regardless of date imposed | |
| 1 Data not available | |||||
Financial impositions include fines imposed in the magistrates and Crown courts, costs orders, compensation orders, victim surcharge orders and unpaid fixed penalty notices and penalty notices for disorder which are registered as fines for enforcement. The numbers of accounts closed and the value collected in the same period of imposition is the position as at the end of March of the year specified and those accounts/amounts outstanding at the end of the period could now have been closed or collected. Accounts that were still outstanding at the end of a period include those that were being paid by instalments or were not due for payment by the end of the year. Accounts that are closed are accounts with a zero balance which could have been by payment or administrative or legal cancellation.
Data are not available for opened and closed in the same year pre-April 2011 as these data are taken from management information reports which only came into force in April 2011.
HMCTS takes the issue of fine enforcement very seriously and is working to ensure that clamping down on fine defaulters is a continued priority nationwide.
Food
Huw Irranca-Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of all food procured for his Department was sourced from (a) British producers, (b) small and medium-sized enterprises and (c) producers which met British buying standards in the latest period for which figures are available. [164771]
Jeremy Wright: The proportion of all food (by value) procured through the Ministry of Justice foodstuff contracts for the provision of foodstuff to prisoners and prison staff sourced from (a) British producers for which figures are available is 46% or £27.5 million extrapolated over a 12-month period; (b) small and medium-sized enterprises for which figures are available is 51% or £25.7 million extrapolated over a 12-month period and (c) producers which met British buying standards in the latest period for which figures are available is 100% or £60 million per annum.
The data set used to inform this figure has been calculated using actual sales data against the current MOJ foodstuff contracts for the provision of prisoner food during the quarter period October 2012 to January 2013.
Green Planning Solutions
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what funding (a) his Department and (b) the Legal Services Commission has provided to Green Planning Solutions in the last five years. [160150]
Mrs Grant: There have been no payments made by the Ministry of Justice or the Legal Aid Agency to Green Planning Solutions in the last five years.
Housing: Forfeiture
Jesse Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for the forfeiture of leasehold residential property were made to the courts in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many such applications were successful. [160815]
Mrs Grant: The number of applications for the forfeiture of leasehold residential property and how many such applications were successful are not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Human Trafficking
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many human trafficking convictions were recorded on a principal offence basis only in 2012. [164917]
Jeremy Wright: The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of human trafficking offences, in England and Wales, in 2012, can be viewed in the table.
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Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, column 110W, on human trafficking, in what ways publishing the county in which a victim has been found could result in such a victim being rediscovered by their trafficker; and how many victims of trafficking have been placed in a Salvation Army shelter situated in the same county as the one in which they were first discovered. [165955]
Mrs Grant: As explained in my answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, column 110W, the identification of potential victims of trafficking, including where they have been found, is a role undertaken by the National Referral Mechanism which is operated by the UK Human Trafficking Centre. The Salvation Army collects information on the organisation or agency that discovered the victim and made a referral to the Salvation Army. Publishing information more detailed than the region could put both the rescued victim and any other victims harboured by their trafficker in danger. It would also inform the traffickers that the authorities are undertaking law enforcement activity in those areas.
In the interests of victim safety and confidentiality, the Ministry of Justice cannot provide information about the work of the 12 shelters that are contracted by the Salvation Army to provide accommodation and assistance.
ICT
Mr Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) computers, (b) mobile telephones, (c) BlackBerrys and (d) other pieces of IT equipment were lost or stolen from his Department in (i) 2010-11, (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13; and if he will make a statement. [156431]
Mrs Grant: Details of (a) computers, (b) mobile phones, (c) BlackBerrys and (d) other pieces of IT equipment lost or stolen from the Ministry of Justice in (i) 2010-11 (ii) 2011-12 and (iii) 2012-13 are supplied in the table. Information on the number of (b) mobile telephones lost or stolen is not held centrally, and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
| Number | |||
| IT equipment lost/stolen | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 |
|
(d) Other pieces of IT equipment (RSA/RAS secure ID tokens, Becrypt encryption tokens and removable media) | |||
| 1 Not held centrally. | |||
The aggregate number of users of PCs, laptops and BlackBerrys in the Department is c. 77,000. Over recent years the Department has increased the number of BlackBerrys issued to staff.
All Ministry of Justice laptops and BlackBerrys are encrypted and protected with a complex password; and all BlackBerrys that are registered as lost or stolen are blocked remotely, making it impossible for them to be used. The Ministry also implements security incident management procedures to ensure that the impacts of incidents are risk managed and investigations are undertaken to seek, and where possible retrieve, lost or stolen assets.
The Ministry adopts Government security policy framework requirements to securely protect its assets. Clear processes are in place for notification of any loss, including reporting it to the police. The compliance of staff with policy and guidance is a line management responsibility, and in the event of any breach, disciplinary action may be taken. Specific sanction is applied to the removal of unencrypted laptops or other official IT equipment containing personal or protectively-marked data from a secure location and in the event of this occurring disciplinary action will be taken which may result in dismissal.
Independent Monitoring Boards
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what proportion of members of independent monitoring boards fell within the age range (a) 20 to 30, (b) 31 to 40, (c) 41 to 50, (d) 51 to 60, (e) 61 to 70 and (f) over 70 in the most recent year for which information is available; [166257]
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(2) what proportion of members of independent monitoring boards fell in each ethnic category in the most recent year for which information is available; [166258]
(3) what proportion of members of independent monitoring boards were (a) women and (b) men in the most recent year for which information is available; [166259]
(4) what information his Department holds on the socio-economic background of members of independent monitoring boards. [166260]
Jeremy Wright: As at 17 July 2013 there were 1,697 independent monitoring board members.
The following table sets out the proportion of members of independent monitoring boards who were aged (a) 20 to 30, (b) 31 to 40, (c) 41 to 40, (d) 51 to 60, (e) 61 to 70 and (f)over 70 as at 17 July 2013.
| Age range | Percentage of 1,687 members |
The following table sets out the proportion of members of independent monitoring boards in each ethnic category as at 17 July 2013.
| Ethnic origin | Percentage of 1,687 members |
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The following table sets out the proportion of members of independent monitoring boards who were (a) women and (b) men as at 17 July 2013.
| Gender | Percentage of 1,697 members |
The information cannot be provided. The Department does not hold information on the socio-economic background of members of independent monitoring boards.
Legal Aid Scheme
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how much has been spent on (a) civil and (b) criminal legal aid in (i) cash and (ii) real terms in each of the last 20 years; [160682]
(2) how many and what proportion of people with cases before (a) civil and (b) criminal courts received legal aid in each of the last 20 years. [160683]
Jeremy Wright: The amount spent on (a) civil and (b) criminal legal aid in (i) cash (i.e. net of operating receipts) and (ii) real terms in each of the last 20 years is shown in the following tables.
The LAA does not record the number of people who receive legal aid. Instead it records the number of ‘acts of assistance’. One individual may receive a number of separate acts of assistance, and one act of assistance can help more than one person. As the categorisation of legal aid has changed over the last 20 years, acts of assistance relating to representation in court cannot be accurately compared over time. Instead the Legal Aid Agency has provided the total acts of assistance relating to civil and criminal cases. The information is available from 1995 onwards.
| Spend Actual | ||||||||||
| £ million | ||||||||||
| 1993-94 | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | |
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | |
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| Spend Real (2011-12 prices) | ||||||||||
| £ million | ||||||||||
| 1993-94 | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | |
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | |
| Acts of assistance | ||||||||||
| Million | ||||||||||
| 1995-96 | 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | |
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | |
Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether his proposed new arrangements for criminal legal aid will apply to children. [161948]
Jeremy Wright: The proposed changes to criminal legal aid do not affect a child's eligibility for legal aid where they have been accused of a crime.
Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation. This included a proposed model of competitive tendering for criminal legal aid services. We have been clear that we must continue to bear down on the cost of legal aid, including nearly £1 billion of taxpayers' money spent on criminal legal aid a year, to ensure we are getting the best deal for the taxpayer.
The proposed changes to criminal legal aid would affect the way services are procured and delivered for all criminal legal aid recipients, but would not affect a child's eligibility for criminal legal aid. Therefore, where necessary, children would continue to be eligible for criminal legal aid as now. The only proposal which would affect the scope of criminal legal aid is the proposal relating to legal aid for prison law cases. The proposed change would apply to all prisoners, including those under eighteen years of age.
We are now carefully considering all responses with a view to publishing the Government response in the autumn.
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on the potential effects of reforms to legal aid on victims of trafficking and domestic violence. [163100]
Jeremy Wright: Between 9 April and 4 June 2013 the Government consulted on a number of proposals to reform legal aid via the “Transforming Legal Aid: delivering a more credible and efficient system” consultation.
We received approximately 16,000 responses to the consultation. Figures will be approximate until the logging process has been completed. A number of these responses addressed the potential effects of our proposed reforms on victims of trafficking and domestic violence.
We are currently analysing responses and will consider carefully points raised during the consultation in respect of the impact of our proposals, including representations received on the potential effects on victims of trafficking and domestic violence.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) average and (b) range of time it has taken the Legal Aid Agency to make a decision following an application for exceptional case funding has been since 1 April 2013. [164007]
Jeremy Wright: To date, the average time it has taken the Legal Aid Agency to make a decision following an application for exceptional case funding, since 1 April 2013, is just under four days.
The range of time it has taken to make a decision is between one and 20 days depending upon the complexity of the case. All new applications for exceptional case funding have a target rate of 20 days. Applications for a review of an exceptional case determination have a target of 10 days. These targets have been met to date.
Exceptional funding is available where a case is excluded from the scope of civil legal aid as defined in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
Magistrates
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many magistrates there were in (a) total and (b) each local court area in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012. [165064]
Mrs Grant:
As of 1 April there were 23,499 magistrates in 2013 respectively. Further information can be found
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in the table provided. We are only able to provide information on the total number of magistrates in England and Wales.
This information can be found in table 8.4 of Court Statistics Quarterly for January to March 2013:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/court-statistics-quarterly-jan-mar-2013
| The Magistracy | |||
| (a) Justices of the Peace, by sex, 1 April 2006-2013 | |||
| Men | Women | Total | |
| Advisory Committee | Total |
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|
| |
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| Note: Between 2010 and 2012, Advisory Committees throughout England and Wales restructured, with some areas merging to create a new Advisory Committee covering a larger geographical area. | |
Mobile Phones
Mike Freer: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which companies supply (a) mobile telephones and (b) mobile data services to his Department. [162691]
Mrs Grant: The suppliers to the Ministry of Justice for the provision of (a) mobile telephones are Vodafone Ltd UK, O2 and EE Ltd, and for (b) mobile data services are Vodafone Ltd UK, EE Ltd, Message 4 u and Textmagic.
Oakwood Prison
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the certified normal accommodation for HM Prison Oakwood has been in each month since it first opened; and how many offenders have been held in the prison in each month since it first opened. [165797]
Jeremy Wright: The opening and full occupation of HM Prison Oakwood, which is by far the largest new prison to be built in recent years, was delivered safely and on schedule. The rate at which prisoners were received was agreed between the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and G4S, the prison's operator. This was to ensure that the prison opened in a safe a secure way, maintaining good order and control and recognising that HM Prison Oakwood was a newly-built prison with newly-recruited and trained staff. As a result, it was agreed between NOMS and G4S that the increase of capacity and prisoners would be kept under review and would be slowed or stopped if there were considerations about safety or security. Full operational capacity was available from January 2013.
The following table shows the total in-use certified normal accommodation, operational capacity and population of HMP Oakwood, as at the last working Friday in each month since its opening on 24 April 2012. Individual prison population and capacity information is published monthly via the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prison-population-figures
| Total in-use certified normal accommodation, operational capacity and population of HMP Oakwood between April 2012 and June 2013 | |||
| In-use certified normal accommodation | Operational capacity | Population | |
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| Note: These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible error with data entry and processing. | |||
Offender Rehabilitation Bill (HL)
Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he intends to release his Department's impact assessment of the Offender Rehabilitation Bill. [166489]
Jeremy Wright: On 20 June 2013, the Ministry of Justice published an updated impact assessment of the Offender Rehabilitation Bill. The impact assessment is available online at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/208171/updated-rehabilitation-bill-impact-assessment.pdf
Offenders
Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether people who are sentenced to less than 12 months, imprisonment and who are subsequently released are subject to licence conditions in England and Wales. [156886]
Jeremy Wright: Adult offenders who are sentenced to immediate custody for a period of less than 12 months are not subject to release on licence, apart from those who are released on home detention curfew prior to their automatic release date. Young adult offenders serving sentences of detention in a young offenders institution are subject to three months' supervision on licence following release. All young offenders serving detention and training orders are subject to supervision on licence when released.
On 9 May we published “Transforming Rehabilitation: a Strategy for Reform”, in which we set out our intention that all offenders leaving prison, including those sentenced to less than 12 months in custody, will now spend a minimum of 12 months being supervised and rehabilitated in the community. We have introduced provisions in the Offender Rehabilitation Bill to this effect.
Mr Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice who is responsible for the statutory supervision of people who are sentenced to periods of 12 months’ imprisonment and who are subsequently released in England and Wales. [156887]
Jeremy Wright:
Probation trusts and youth offending teams are currently responsible for supervising offenders released from custody on licence. On 9 May we published “Transforming Rehabilitation: a Strategy for Reform”.
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Once these reforms are implemented, offenders released on licence will be supervised either by contracted rehabilitation providers or by the new national probation service.
Offenders: Rehabilitation
Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the proposals outlined on page 23 of “Transforming Rehabilitation: A Strategy for Reform”, what training private sector employees will receive in respect of suitability for dealing with (a) breach of community orders and (b) recall to prison. [165662]
Jeremy Wright: “Transforming Rehabilitation: a Strategy for Reform” sets out the plans for transforming the way in which offenders are managed in the community in order to bring down reoffending rates. Under these reforms we will create a new national public sector probation service. It will be the responsibility of the National Probation Service to decide on action in relation to all potential breaches beyond a first warning. They will also advise the courts or Secretary of State on sanctions or recall to custody.
Current probation staff train and qualify as Probation Offices and Probation Service Officers via the Probation Qualifications Framework. The framework sets out the learning and occupational competence needed to qualify and practise as a probation officer, including enforcement of court orders and licences. The Probation Qualifications Framework will continue to apply across the National Probation Service.
New providers will be required to ensure that their delivery in respect of public protection meets all quality standards, including working with the public sector in the discharge of the public protection function. They will be expected to evidence in their bids how they will manage a workforce with appropriate levels of training and competence.
Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people completed accredited offending behaviour and substance misuse programmes while in (a) custody and (b) the community in (i) 2011-12 and (ii) 2012-13. [166532]
Jeremy Wright: The information requested can be found in the Accredited Programmes Annual Bulletin 2012-13 (England and Wales), published by the Ministry of Justice on 25 July 2013 at the following location:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/225196/accredited-programmes-annual-bulletin-2012-13.pdf
Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department has spent on research on each prisoner rehabilitation programme in each of the last five years; and which organisation undertook each such research programme. [166535]
Jeremy Wright:
The term ‘prisoner rehabilitation programmes’ covers a broad range of activity, delivered in prison and through the gate, aimed at the rehabilitation of offenders. A list of external research projects on prisoner rehabilitation programmes, commissioned between
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2008-09 and 2012-13, is available in a table, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. Research commissioned by the Ministry of Justice and the National Offender Management Service has been included.
Parole
Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the backlog was of Parole Board cases involving prisoners serving (a) an indeterminate sentence for public protection and (b) a life sentence in each month since March 2012. [166533]
Jeremy Wright: The information is provided in the following table. This lists, in respect of each month since March 2012, the number of indeterminate sentences for public protection (IPP) cases and life sentence cases which had reached the target date for a parole hearing and had not been allocated an oral hearing date or where a decision had not yet been made on the case papers.
The total number of cases is also provided in respect of each month. As the Parole Board has not always recorded cases by sentence type, I regret that these data are not available for the months of June 2012 and April 2013.
The Parole Board is committed to working in an effective and efficient manner in order to meet the objective, contained in the Board's current business plan, to significantly reduce the backlog by the end of 2013/14.
As well as increasing the number of Parole Board Members and hearings, work is also underway to streamline the end-to-end parole process in order to deliver lasting improvements.
| Month | IPP sentence | Life sentence | Total |
| 1 Data unavailable | |||
Pay
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many employees of (a) his Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies have an annual salary of (i) £100,000 to £150,000, (ii) £150,001 to £200,000, (iii) £200,001 to £250,000, (iv) £250,001 to £300,000, (v) £300,001 to £350,000 and (vi) over £350,000; [154315]
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(2) how many employees of (a) his Department and (b) the agencies and non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible have an annual salary of (a) between £100,000 and £150,000, (b) between £150,001 and £200,000, (c) between £200,001 and £250,000, (d) between £250,001 and £300,000, (e) between £300,001 and £350,000 and (f) over £350,001. [154390]
Mrs Grant: The number of officials in the Ministry of Justice (Ministry of Justice HQ, HM Courts and Tribunals Service, and Office of the Public Guardian) and non-departmental public bodies that earned a full-time equivalent salary in excess of £100,000 as at 30 September 2012 stood at 45 and is broken down as follows.
Since 2010 both MOJ core and NOMS have significantly reduced the number of staff with salaries over £100,000.
| Salary band | Number of staff |
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many employees of (a) his Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies have an annual salary before tax of over £142,000; [154316]
(2) how many employees of (a) his Department and (b) the agencies and non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible have an annual salary before tax of over £142,000. [154391]
Mrs Grant: The number of officials in the Ministry of Justice (Ministry of Justice HQ, HM Courts and Tribunals Service and Office of the Public Guardian) as at 30 September 2012 (the latest data available) who have had an annual salary before tax of over £142,000 was three.
The number of officials in the Ministry of Justice's arm’s length bodies and National Offender Management Service as at 31 March 2013 who had an annual salary before tax of over £142,000 was eight.
Since 2010 MOJ core has significantly reduced the number of staff with salaries over £142,000.
Prison Accommodation
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the occupancy rate as a proportion of population to in-use certified normal accommodation was in (a) the whole of the Prison Service and (b) each public and privately-run prison in England and Wales on 1 April (i) 2009, (ii) 2010, (iii) 2011, (iv) 2012 and (v) 2013. [154417]
Jeremy Wright: The information requested has been placed in the Library of the House and is also published online at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prison-population-figures
The data are produced on the last working Friday of March in years 2009 to 2013 and therefore the information
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published is from the last working Friday in March in each year and not on 1 April as requested. We need to ensure that our custodial estate has sufficient places to meet the demand of the courts while securing best value for money for the taxpayer.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible error with data entry and processing.
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much increased capacity in the prison estate since May 2010 has come about as a result of (a) new prison places becoming available, (b) existing accommodation being returned to use, (c) an increase in multiple occupancy of prison cells and (d) other measures. [166025]
Jeremy Wright: In June 2013, the Justice Secretary announced that a new prison that could hold around 2,000 prisoners will be built in north Wales, delivering a significant and rapid investment to the Welsh economy. The new prison—the first to be built in north Wales—will bring around £23 million a year to the regional economy, providing much needed jobs and opportunities for local business. It is estimated around 1,000 jobs will be created.
The following table shows the number of places between Friday 30 April 2010 and Friday 26 July 2013 which were delivered as a result of (a) new prison accommodation becoming available, (b) existing accommodation being returned to use (e.g. being returned to use following maintenance or refurbishment work), (c) an increase in multiple occupancy of prison cells and (d) other measures.
The table does not reflect the 9,193 places that have been taken out of use since 30 April 2010. 4,932 places have been taken out of use as a result of prison closures at HMPs Lancaster Castle, Wellingborough, Latchmere House, Ashwell, Canterbury, Gloucester, Bullwood Hall, Kingston, Shrewsbury and Shepton Mallet; 2,609 places were taken out of use for refurbishment purposes; 857 places were taken out of use as a result of decreases in multiple occupancy of prison cells; and finally, 795 places were taken out of use due to other measures such as a change of function.
Between Friday 30 April 2010 and Friday 26 July 2013 the total operational capacity of the prison estate increased by a net 481 places, comprising 9,674 increases and 9,193 decreases. This included a net decrease of 380 places in multiple occupancy prison cells.
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These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible error with data entry and processing.
Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what funding his Department plans to provide for capital expenditure on new prison places in (a) the current spending review period and (b) the next spending review period. [166621]
Jeremy Wright: The information is as follows:
(a) The priority is to provide enough prison places for those sent there by the courts—and to do so in a way that gives taxpayers the best possible value for money. In the current spending review period covering the years 2011-12 to 2014-15, a total of approximately £219 million will be spent on new prison places. This includes investment to complete a previous prison capacity programme, four new house blocks and to start the recently announced new prison in north Wales. Across the country we are reducing the cost of prison by replacing old, inefficient buildings with newer accommodation that is cheaper to run. The new prison in Wales allows us to continue this work while providing a significant and rapid investment in the Welsh economy.
(b) In the next spending round period covering 2015-16, the indicative budget is currently £100 million.
Prison Governors
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many current prison governors have criminal convictions. [166026]
Jeremy Wright: I refer the right hon. Gentleman to my answer to his question on 18 June 2013, Official Report, column 634W.
Prison Sentences
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) sex offenders and (b) violent offenders convicted of what offence were given imprisonment for public protection in each of the last 15 months. [164458]
Jeremy Wright: The number of offenders sentenced at all courts for offences relating to violence against the person or sexual offences who were sentenced to imprisonment for public protection (IPP), by offence class sentenced, in England and Wales, from 1 October 2011 to 31 December 2012 (latest data available), can be viewed in the table. IPP sentences were replaced by a robust new determinate sentencing regime, and mandatory life sentence for repeated very serious violent and sexual offending, in the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012, and are not available for offenders convicted on or after 3 December 2012.
Court proceedings data for 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
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| Offenders sentenced at all courts for offences relating to violence against the person or sexual offences who were sentenced to imprisonment for public protection (IPP)1, by offence class sentenced, England and Wales, 1 October 2011 to 31 December 20122, 3 | ||
| Offence group | Offence class | Sentenced to IPP |
| 1 Sentences of imprisonment for public protection introduced by the Criminal Justice Act 2003 on 4 April 2005. 2 The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 3 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 4 Includes offences of manslaughter, causing death by dangerous driving, and manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice | ||
Mr Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to his answer of 3 July 2013, Official Report, column 641W, on prison sentences, if he will provide the information requested in the original question; and if he will fix the web link provided in the original answer. [165480]
Jeremy Wright:
Pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2013, officials in my Department have confirmed that the web link provided in the original answer is correct and live. For reference please see the tables I have placed in the House Library. Table A5.2 presents figures for volumes of offenders sentenced at magistrates courts. Table A5.3 presents figures for volumes of offenders sentenced at the Crown court; table A5.9 shows the
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percentage of offenders sentenced to immediate custody, by court type for the period of 2002 to 2012; and table A5.26 presents offenders sentenced for indictable offences at the Crown court: plea, immediate custody and average sentence length, for the period of 2002 to 2012.
The tables referred to in the answer are available through the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/203849/5-sentencing-tables-dec12.xls