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Solicitor-General

Answer

Mr. Sedgemore: To ask the Solicitor-General if she will set out, with statistical information relating as directly as possible to Folkestone and Hythe constituency, the effects on Folkestone and Hythe of the Law Officers' Department policies and actions since 2 May 1997. [216027] The Solicitor-General: Since 1997 the Government have embarked on a programme of reform in the criminal justice system to deliver justice for all by convicting and punishing the guilty and helping them to stop offending, while protecting the innocent. Statistics are not maintained on a constituency level. For Kent as a whole the statutory charging scheme was introduced in May 2004. This has had a significant impact on the number of cases which fall out of the criminal justice system after charge with an improvement from 18.3 per cent. in 2002-03 to 15.4 per cent. in 2004-05 to date. Within Kent there are nine Witness Care Units, the introduction of which should have an impact on the numbers of ineffective trials in both the magistrates courts and the Crown court. Kent has one of 14 specialist antisocial behaviour prosecutors. The prosecutor contributes substantially to inter-agency working and 21 Orders on conviction were granted in Kent between November 2004 and February 2005.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

432 c1333-4W;432 c1329-30W; 216027

Session

2004-05

Subjects

Government departments Policy Solicitor General Folkestone and Hythe Folkestone

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk