Written question asked by Paul Sweeney (Labour) on Wednesday, 26 June 2019, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 1 July 2019 (named day). It was answered by Robert Buckland (Conservative) on Monday, 1 July 2019 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Television Licences: Older People

Question: To ask the Minister for Justice, what support he plans to provide to the courts service to deal with the potential increase in non-payment prosecution for TV licences by vulnerable defendants over the age of 75 who do not pay for a TV licence from June 2020.

Answer: TV Licensing prosecutions are dealt with via the Single Justice Procedure, which was introduced in 2015 to allow for more efficient resolution of low-level, summary only-non imprisonable offences in which the offender pleads guilty or does not respond. HMCTS has not made any specific arrangements for any potential increase in non-payment prosecutions for TV licences from June 2020. If required, to meet any emerging demand HMCTS will deploy its planning and allocation processes which allow for resource adjustment or reallocation.

Secondary information