Tag: Ministry of Justice

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 19 January 2024.

His Majesty The King has approved the appointment of 95 barristers and solicitors as new King’s Counsel (KC) in England and Wales and the appointment of 5 new Honorary King’s Counsel (KC Honoris Causa).

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 18 January 2024.

Children will be better protected from sexual abuse following change to the law making it easier to prosecute criminals who have had sex in front of children for gratification.

An amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill will remove the need to prove that the perpetrators knew, believed, or intended that the child was aware. Instead, the offence will focus on whether they are exploiting the child’s presence for their own sexual gratification, ensuring that convictions will no longer be missed.

Minister for Victims and Safeguarding Laura Farris said:

We are criminalising these acts which exploit, humiliate and seriously harm children. It is unacceptable that any abuser has been able to take advantage of this this gap in the law to avoid prison in the past.

Our changes ensure that the law works effectively and that the right services are there to support child victims to rebuild their lives,

An extra £350,000 is also being invested to further improve support for child victims of sexual abuse on the back of the NSPCC campaign to encourage more reporting of abuse.

The government-funded campaign which launched last week (9 January 2024) is part of the government’s response to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. It targets the general public and professionals who work with children in order to boost awareness of what to do if they are concerned about child sexual abuse.

The government is also investing almost £90,000 in the Bluestar Project run by the Green House to ensure children who are victims of sexual abuse receive the best support possible. This will fund training for over 60 Ministry of Justice-funded charities across the country in how to provide pre-trial support to child victims.

A further £270,000 has also been allocated to the Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse to improve the provision of services to victims of child sexual abuse. Activities will include a directory of support services and a data hub. This will enable commissioners to have instant access to child sexual abuse data in their local area to assess the demand for support services and allocate resources.

Notes to editors

• The tabled amendment would amend offences at sections 11, 18, 32, 36 and 40 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 to criminalise sexual activity in the presence of a child or a person with a mental disorder, where the defendant engages in sexual activity in the child’s presence for the purposes of obtaining sexual gratification but does not know, intend or believe the child is aware that they are engaging in the sexual activity.
• Currently the law in this area hinges on whether the defendant knew or believed that child was aware of sexual activity in their presence, or if the defendant intended them to be aware of it. However, proving this belief, knowledge or intention can be problematic in some cases, particularly when the child involved is too young to give evidence.
• Instead, the amendment will mean that the offences will no longer require the defendant to know, believe or intend that the child is aware of the sexual activity but retains the link between the fact of the child’s presence and the defendant’s own sexual gratification.
• This change avoids inadvertently criminalising sexual activity between parents who share a bedroom with a young child.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 18 January 2024.

The Lord Chancellor has approved the reappointment of Alison Curry as the accountant member of the Insolvency Rules Committee.

The Lord Chancellor has reappointed Alison Curry, as accountant member of the Insolvency Rules Committee (IRC), for 2 years from 1 August 2024.

Alison Curry

Alison a licensed insolvency practitioner with 28 years of experience working within both private practice and the regulatory arena. She is currently Technical Manager at AlixPartners, where she provides legislative and regulatory compliance support to colleagues within the UK Turnaround and Restructuring practice.

She is an elected member of R3’s National Council, Chair of the R3 Membership Committee and a contributor to the Lexis Nexis panel of insolvency experts.

Alison is an accomplished trainer and public speaker on insolvency issues and has extensive experience in drafting regulatory guidance, project management and delivery, and the implementation of organisational change.

Insolvency Rules Committee

The IRC is an expert body that advises on proposed new and amendments to insolvency rules that underpin the wider insolvency legislative framework; their advice and recommendations are provided to the Lord Chancellor.

IRC members are from the legal and accountancy professions and will have many years of operational experience in dealing with insolvency matters. They provide their services on a voluntary and unremunerated basis.

Appointments are made, to the IRC, by the Lord Chancellor – under the Insolvency Act 1986 – after consulting the Chancellor of the High Court. Appointments are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments and must comply with the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 11 January 2024.

The Ministry of Justice has today (11 January 2024) confirmed the sale of the former Reading Prison site to a non-profit organisation, the Ziran Education Foundation.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 11 January 2024.

Tottenham Park Cemetery in Enfield is facing closure after owners repeatedly failed to make necessary improvements to ensure the safety of burials.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 30 December 2023.

People are being encouraged to see how justice is done in courtrooms with the publication of a new and simple ‘how to’ guide for attending court hearings today.

Around two million court and tribunals hearings take place every year and for the first time ever, this eight-page document sets out in one place how people can access many of them.

From murder trials to employment law cases, it explains the different types of courts and tribunals, how to observe a court hearing, which areas of court are open to the public and what to expect once inside the court.

It also includes details like what to do before a hearing and how to access Wi-Fi in court buildings, and directs people to further resources for more information.

Justice Minister, Mike Freer, said:

Open and transparent courts are a key principle of our justice system and it is vital people can see for themselves how justice is done.

This guide is another way we are lifting the curtain for the public to help them easily observe trials, tribunals and hearings.

In a further boost to support the principle of open justice, the document will also help HMCTS staff be well prepared to help members of the public access hearings, and to support those attending for the first time.

The guide follows a move last year to allow cameras to film some sentencing remarks by judges in Crown Courts to allow more people to see inside the courts as justice is served.

The Government has previously published the Reporters Charter which outlined the rights and responsibilities of court reporters to boost transparency in the justice system.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 29 December 2023.

A record number of offenders with alcohol problems will be forced to stay dry this festive season in a bid to cut booze-fuelled crime over Christmas.

Statistics released today (Friday 29 December) show around 2800 offenders have been made to wear an alcohol tag during Christmas and New Year, with the devices able to detect if an offender has been drinking by analysing their sweat.

This is an increase of around 1000 offenders from the same time last year and follows the Government’s drive to double the number of people on tags at any one time by 2025 and protect communities from the violence and disorder often caused by alcohol.

If an offender has had a drink an alert will be sent to the probation officer who can take action. The tags are so accurate they won’t be triggered by foods that contain alcohol –but boozy drinks will raise the alarm and offenders face being sent to prison.

The Government’s investment will nearly double the number of defendants on tags at any one time from 13,500 in 2021 to 25,000 by 2025.

Around 39% of all violent crime in the UK involves alcohol, including domestic abuse which can rise during the festive period as figures provided by charities such as Women’s Aid have often demonstrated.

Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk KC, said:

“The festive season is a time of celebration but a small minority can take it too far. We’re keeping communities safe by tagging a record number of offenders this Christmas period.

“These innovative alcohol tags act as an important deterrent to offenders and come with a clear message: step out of line and you could end up behind bars.”

Alcohol tags are part of the Government’s unprecedented £156 million investment in tagging technology which means the UK has remained among the world leaders in the use of tags to fight crime and keep people safe.

The tags were first rolled out in 2020 as a punishment for alcohol-fuelled crimes and are also used to help keep the public safe from offenders considered likely to commit crimes when drunk.

Roughly 20% of offenders on probation are classed as having a drinking problem, so these tags play a part in helping to cut alcohol-fuelled crime, which causes untold misery for victims and lands society with a £21 billion bill each year.

Offenders banned from alcohol by the courts have stayed sober for 97% of the time on average, showing that these tags are successfully working as a deterrent.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 18 December 2023.

Mike Freer MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, has approved the reappointment of Flora Page, as a non-lay member of the Legal Services Board, for 4 years from 1 August 2024.

Biography

Flora Page has been both a solicitor and a barrister. In 1996, she joined Clifford Chance and subsequently worked for the Law Commission and the University of Law. Flora than established her own firm, Old Bailey Solicitors. Having obtained, in 2002, higher rights of audience, she cross-qualified – in 2013 – as a barrister and joined 23 Essex Street Chambers. Her practice focusses on financial crime, and she prosecutes and defends in equal measure.

She is a leading junior, a Grade 4 Prosecutor, and a facilitator for Advocacy and the Vulnerable training. Flora has also had a period at the Financial Conduct Authority, where she has worked in both enforcement and consumer redress policy development. She is also a part-time PhD student at University College London, researching corporate misconduct. She was a long-serving committee member of the Solicitors’ Association of Higher Court Advocates, and then a member of the Executive of the Criminal Bar Association. Flora has been a member of the 23 Essex Street Equality and Diversity Committee, and a Financial Conduct Authority Equality and Diversity Superuser.

She is currently appearing in the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 15 December 2023.

Genealogists, historians and amateur family archivists will be better able to access historic wills under proposals published today.

The ambitious digitisation programme could see millions of wills dating back more than 150 years moved online and more easily accessible to the public in a bid to improve the current storage system.

Currently about 110 million physical documents are stored costing taxpayers £4.5 million per year. The consultation is seeking views on keeping hard copies for about 25 years, in recognition of their sentimental value to families, while saving them digitally longer term.

Where wills belong to notable individuals or have significant historical interest the physical copies would remain preserved. The wills of Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens and Diana, Princess of Wales are among those currently stored at the Ministry of Justice facility in Birmingham.

Justice Minister Mike Freer said:

Historic wills can provide us with a unique window into the past and we want to make it as easy for amateur and professional historians alike to access these documents.

Digitalisation allows us to move with the times and save the taxpayer valuable money, while preserving paper copies of noteworthy wills which hold historical importance.

Presently where wills are submitted for scrutiny, predominately when people apply for probate, the High Court is required to preserve them permanently – and has done since 1858.

The process of scanning wills and supporting documents is already in place, as routine digitising began in 2021, however this has not extended to any documents submitted before 2021.

If people wish to access these wills or documents, they must apply and wait for them to be removed from storage and digitised so a copy can be sent out. This process can take weeks.

Under the proposals, a programme of working backwards to digitise all older documents will begin. Once digitised, access requests will be serviceable much more quickly.

The consultation also suggests exceptions should be made to preserve the original paper wills of famous people for historic record. It is seeking views on drawing up suitable criteria for those decisions.

The consultation will end on 23 February 2024.

Notes to editors

• The legality of a will is something that needs to be established. In many cases this is done by the courts in granting probate, however, in a very small number of cases wills can be subject to challenge. For example, by an allegation that a fraud was committed, or undue influence exerted on the person making the will. That means the court will need to check the will and it is held in case challenges are made.
• Since 2021, digital copies have been made of wills and supporting documents in all new probate applications. This system has been working well, with more than half a million digitised so far.
• The consultation paper is also seeking views on whether all the supporting documents currently held permanently need to be retained – for example deed polls, affidavits etc.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 15 December 2023.

Extra staff have been deployed to HMP Bedford to reduce violence and self-harm as part of a package of urgent measures to improve conditions at the prison.

The changes follow on from a critical review by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) in November which identified serious concerns resulting in an Urgent Notification.

As part of the Urgent Notification process Ministers have 28 days to respond to the notice and set out the immediate actions needed to bring about long-term change.

Two senior leaders have been brought in solely to help deal with the complex causes of violence and self-harm at the prison. They will use their extensive experience to help staff tackle these issues and mandatory drug testing will also be reintroduced to cut drug-related violence.

Improvements to living conditions are already underway with more cleanliness and pest control checks and a new Segregation Unit is being constructed to open in Spring 2024.

Prisons Minister Edward Argar said:

I was deeply concerned about the Inspectorate’s findings at HMP Bedford and the actions I am setting out today will address the issues highlighted by the Chief Inspector.

The experienced staff we have brought in will help reduce violence and improve safety, following the improvements to the prison’s living conditions we’ve already made.

Other areas where immediate action is being taken include:

• Recruiting two new Diversity and Inclusion Leads to ensure prisoners can raise concerns over accusations of racism and that they are addressed immediately.
• A weekly Use of Force scrutiny review panel has begun and reviews all incidents where force is used against prisoners.
• An independent review of prisoner induction will be carried out to ensure all prisoners receive a full induction that meets their needs on arrival.
• To improve access to purposeful activity the prison’s education provider will deliver maths and English teaching to 50% more prisoners from April 2024.

The government introduced the Urgent Notification process in 2017 to ensure immediate, urgent action was taken when necessary to address serious concerns identified by inspectors.