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Written question asked by Jacob Rees-Mogg (Conservative) on Monday, 12 June 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 15 June 2023 (named day). It was answered by Mike Freer (Conservative) on Thursday, 15 June 2023 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Coroners: Somerset

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the time taken to process cases by the Somerset Coroners Court; and if he will make a statement.

Answer

The Coroner Statistics 2022: England and Wales, published on 11 May 2023, indicate that, for the Somerset coroner area in 2022, the average time from the report of a death to the coroner and the completion of an inquest was 31 weeks. This was an increase from 23 weeks in 2021.

In 2022, the average time for completion of an inquest in England and Wales as a whole was 30 weeks – a decrease from 31 weeks in 2021.

The Ministry of Justice does not have operational responsibility for coroner services, which are administered and funded by individual local authorities. Consequently, this department does not hold information on remote working by staff in the Somerset coroner service.

The Chief Coroner continues to work with individual coroner areas and their funding authorities and the police to ensure that services are effectively delivered. He is engaged with the relevant authority for the Somerset coroner area on service improvements.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
188934
Session
2022-23
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Coroners Somerset
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk