§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Solicitor-General what statutory law enforcement agencies and prosecuting authorities there are within the responsibility of her Department; and what complaints procedure is available for each. [57128]
§ The Solicitor-General[holding answer 16 May 2002]: The Law Officers Department is responsible for three prosecuting authorities: The Crown Prosecution Service, the Serious Fraud Office and the Prosecuting Arm of HM Customs and Excise.
All complaints received by the CPS are dealt with in accordance with designated procedure set out in a complaints leaflet. This is also available on the Internet on the CPS website www.cps.gov.uk. There are three stages to the CPS complaints handling procedure. Complaints are initially directed to the Branch or Unit 94W that dealt with the case in question. The Branch Crown Prosecutor or Unit Head will arrange for a response to be sent.
If the complainant is dissatisfied with this response, or alleges impropriety by the CPS, the matter will be referred to the Chief Crown Prosecutor.
Complaints which cannot be resolved by the Chief Crown Prosecutor are referred through the Customer Service Unit to the Director of Public Prosecutions or Chief Executive who will consider how the complaint should be handled and arrange for a response to be sent. Where possible, a full response should be sent to the complainant within three working days of receipt. If a full response is not possible, an acknowledgement should be sent within three days and a full response within 10 working days.
The Serious Fraud Office complaints procedure is that minor complaints about members of staff are dealt with by Line Managers or their Assistant Directors.
Formal written complaints addressed to the Director are dealt with either by her or passed or an Assistant Director for full investigation.
Complaints about the professional conduct of legally qualified SFO staff may be made to the appropriate professional standards body such as the Bar Council or the Law Society.
Customs and Excise complaints procedure is contained within their Code of Practice which is available on their website www.hmce.gov.uk.
Where complaints cannot be resolved with the Customs Officer concerned, complainants are directed to the Regional Complaints Unit. That Unit will ask the appropriate local manager to investigate the complaint and the Unit will then respond normally within 10 working days.
If the complainant is dissatisfied with that response, the complaint can be reconsidered by the Regional or Business Head.
Where a complainant is not satisfied with the response by the Customs and Excise, the matter may be raised with the Adjudicator. The Adjudicator will give an independent view of the case and make a recommendation.