§ Ms. Harmanasked the Attorney-General if he will give figures for the average time a convicted prisoner held in custody has had to wait for appeal against sentence in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will give a breakdown between cases involving sentences of less than and more than one year.
§ The Attorney-GeneralFigures for average waiting times for appeals to the Crown court against conviction and/or sentence in magistrates' courts are available only in aggregate. In 1985 the average waiting time in England and Wales for all appellants given a custodial sentence who were dealt with at the Crown court (whether held on custody or on bail, and whether appealing against sentence only or against sentence and conviction) was 5.1 weeks. No breakdown is available by length of sentence passed. Statistics on waiting times for appeals against sentence imposed by the Crown court are not at present collected.