§ Mr. ShersbyTo ask the Attorney-General (1) if he will arrange for decisions by the Crown prosecution service as to whether or not criminal proceedings are to be brought to be communicated to any police officer under investigation as quickly as possible;
(2) in how many cases the Crown prosecution service has received files for consideration in connection with the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands serious crime squad;
(3) when he expects the Crown prosecution service to have reached a decision in all cases submitted to it as a result of the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands serious crime squad;
(4) in how many cases the Crown prosecution service has decided whether criminal proceedings are to be brought against any police officer under investigation arising from the West Yorkshire police inquiry into the West Midlands crime squad.
§ Mr. MullinTo ask the Attorney-General when he received the West Yorkshire police report on the West Midlands serious crimes squad; and when he expects to reach a decision.
The Attorney-GeneralBetween 16 March 1990 and 16 October 1991 the Crown prosecution service has received from the West Yorkshire metropolitan police a total of 73 files relating respectively to complaints about individual officers and investigations unto practices of the West Midlands serious crime squad. Consideration of these cases is well advanced, but a final decision will not be taken in any particular case until it has also been reviewed in the context of the cumulative evidence available from all the cases under consideration.
It is not at present possible to say when final decisions will be taken, but this will be as soon as possible and it is hoped in the near future. In accordance with normal practice in this type of case, the decisions will be communicated to individual officers by a senior officer and not directly by the Crown prosecution service.