Written questions by Costa.

Whether forthcoming legislative proposals on the use of non-disclosure agreements would apply retrospectively.

Victims are always able to report crimes to the police under the common law, even if their Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) suggests otherwise and irrespective of when the NDA was entered into. However, since 1 October 2025, section 17 of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 allows individuals who are victims of crime, or reasonably believe they are, to share information with specified parties for certain purposes related to the criminal conduct, even if their NDA appears to preclude them from doing so. Additionally, clause 24 of the Employment Rights Bill will void any provision in an agreement between a worker and their employer to the extent that it seeks to prevent a worker from speaking out about relevant harassment and discrimination, unless conditions for an “excepted agreement” to be set in regulations are met. This measure is not yet in force and is subject to the Bill gaining Royal Assent.Neither of these initiatives would apply retrospectively. They would not apply to NDAs entered into before the date on which the relevant legislation comes into force. This is in line with the rule of law principle that policy changes generally apply prospectively, to provide certainty for individuals and businesses about the rules governing their conduct.

What estimate she has made of the number of private prosecution cases brought by the RSPCA being heard in the Crown Court and the Magistrates Court since the introduction of the Animal Welfare Act 2006.

Based on extracted management information data, the RSPCA has initiated 15,070 prosecutions since the Animal Welfare Act 2006 came into force in April 2007. This figure is taken as of September 2024 in line with published statistics.There have been 198 Crown Court receipts of prosecutions initiated by the RSPCA since the Animal Welfare Sentencing Act 2021 came into force in June 2021.As the CPS has the power to take over any private prosecution, it is not possible to identify any such cases from the figures provided, and therefore these figures may include prosecutions taken over by the CPS.This Government recognises that greater transparency is needed in relation to private prosecutions, in order to improve confidence in the criminal justice system. This is why we have launched a public consultation on options to improve the oversight, regulation, and transparency of private prosecutors in the criminal justice system, which closes on 08 May. The consultation seeks respondents’ views on improvements to the available data on private prosecutors and the prosecutions they bring.

What estimate she has made of the number of private prosecution cases brought by the RSPCA being heard in the Crown Court since the introduction of the Animal Welfare Sentencing Act 2021.

Based on extracted management information data, the RSPCA has initiated 15,070 prosecutions since the Animal Welfare Act 2006 came into force in April 2007. This figure is taken as of September 2024 in line with published statistics.There have been 198 Crown Court receipts of prosecutions initiated by the RSPCA since the Animal Welfare Sentencing Act 2021 came into force in June 2021.As the CPS has the power to take over any private prosecution, it is not possible to identify any such cases from the figures provided, and therefore these figures may include prosecutions taken over by the CPS.This Government recognises that greater transparency is needed in relation to private prosecutions, in order to improve confidence in the criminal justice system. This is why we have launched a public consultation on options to improve the oversight, regulation, and transparency of private prosecutors in the criminal justice system, which closes on 08 May. The consultation seeks respondents’ views on improvements to the available data on private prosecutors and the prosecutions they bring.