§ Mr. George OsborneTo ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to her answer of 8 April 2003,Official Report, column 154W, whether she is now in a position to make a statement on the implications for the Crown Prosecution Service of the case of Mrs. Sally Clark. [119872]
§ The Solicitor-GeneralThe Court of Appeal has now given its judgment in full in the case of Mrs. Sally Clark. In giving its reasons for quashing the murder convictions, the Court found the convictions were unsafe. No fault was attributed to the Crown Prosecution Service.
The Court of Appeal focused on the non-disclosure of potentially significant evidence by Dr. Williams. It also considered the use of statistical evidence by Professor Meadow.
The Crown Prosecution Service has already responded to the Sally Clark judgment. It is in the process of issuing guidance to all Chief Crown Prosecutors instructing them to identify cases involving either Doctor Williams or Professor Meadow and ensuring that the defence are made aware of the judgment. Such disclosure would also be applied to any future cases. The implications for previous cases involving Doctor Williams has been discussed and is still being assessed. The Crown Prosecution Service is involved, alongside other relevant agencies, in consideration of that issue.