§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the(a) work and (b) effectiveness of the Criminal Cases Review Commission. [159664]
§ Paul GogginsThe Criminal Cases Review Commission acts as a safety net to the Criminal Justice System. I commend the hard work of its Chairman, Members and staff in establishing the Commission as an authoritative and respected body. The Commission has established a high reputation for its decision making, for 871W impartiality, openness and thoroughness and has won the confidence of the public, the legal profession and related pressure groups.
Two thirds of the Commission's referrals have lead to quashed convictions or reduced sentences.
The Commission will be able to analyse the legal and investigative issues that still commonly arise in miscarriages of justice. The Commission will be able to provide advice to other stakeholders and agencies within the criminal justice system on actions that could help to minimise their incidence. The Commission's main priority, however, is to deal with its case accumulation, minimising the waiting time for applicants particularly those in custody. With additional funding, the Commission has made a considerable reduction in the number of cases awaiting a review from the 1999 peak. I have every confidence that the Commission will continue to make good progress towards this goal despite the recent unexpected rise in the number of applications.
§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions the Criminal Cases Review Commission has received representations from people concerned about(a) a body of expert evidence and (b) particular investigative methods and subsequently investigated these concerns. [159706]
§ Paul GogginsA large number of applications to the Commission have raised concerns over expert evidence and investigative methods. Such concerns when raised are considered and if necessary investigated further. Finding the precise number of such cases would involve a search of over 6,500 records, which would incur disproportionate cost.
§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his consultation with the Criminal Cases Review Commission regarding extension of its powers under section 17 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995. [159707]
§ Paul GogginsHome Office officials met most recently with the Criminal Cases Review Commission on 4 February 2004 to discuss further. their proposals for extending their powers under section 17 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995. The proposals involve the complex issue of third party disclosure and are still under active consideration.
§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his Department will provide the Criminal Cases Review Commission with additional resources in order for it to(a) review and (b) research non-referred cases. [159708]
§ Paul GogginsAt the present time it would be inappropriate to distract the Criminal Cases Review Commission from its main goal of minimising case accumulation.