Written questions by Shannon.

If she will make an estimate of the number of people convicted for offences related to puppy farming in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on offenders convicted for animal cruelty offences in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.However, data held centrally does not include information on whether defendants were convicted for offences related to puppy farming.This information may be held in court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on support for victims of rape and sexual assault who are under 18 and in the education system.

This Government is committed to ensuring that all victims of crime, including child victims of rape and sexual assault, have the support that they need to cope with their experiences and move forward with their lives. My Department provides funding to over 60 specialist support organisations through the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund. This supports the delivery of tailored support programmes for all victims and survivors, including child victims. I regularly meet with the Minister for Children and Families (DfE). This includes a recent joint meeting with her and the Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls (HO) where we discussed matters relating to Violence Against Women and Girls.

How many people have been convicted of drink driving offences in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number convicted for drink driving offences at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics. This can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Prosecutions and convictions’ tab, using the HO Offence Code filter to select the following offences:80301 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle whilst unfit through drink or drugs (impairment) (MOT).80302 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle while having a breath, urine or blood alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit (MOT).80303 - Failing without reasonable excuse to provide a specimen for a laboratory test or two specimens for analysis of breath if at the relevant time driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle (MOT).80306 - Being in charge of a motor vehicle and failing to provide a specimen for a laboratory test or two specimens for analysis of breath if at the relevant time driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle (MOT).80309 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle whilst unfit through drink or drugs (impairment) - drink (MOT).

Whether she plans to review legal protections around the (a) abuse and (b) neglect of older people.

Any form of elder abuse or neglect is unacceptable. Whilst the Government has no immediate plans to conduct a specific review of the range of legal protections already in place around the abuse and neglect of older people, it continues to engage with partners about this serious issue.In the meantime, there are already robust safeguards in place. Local authorities have a statutory duty to investigate safeguarding concerns under the Care Act 2014. The statutory guidance of the Care Act 2014 makes it clear that local authorities must ensure that the services they commission are safe, effective and of high quality. Since April 2023, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) have had a duty to assess local authorities’ delivery of their duties under Part 1 of the Care Act 2024.The first formal assessment of local authorities began in December 2023, shortly after the CQC concluded its pilot assessments in November. The CQC has published its first three local authority ratings and reports and is rolling out assessments to all 153 local authorities in England.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on reviewing powers of entry for social workers.

The Ministry of Justice has no remit for powers of entry for social workers. Therefore, there have been no discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the issue. Any review of such powers would be a matter for the Department of Health and Social Care.

How many people have been convicted of online fraud in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on convictions for a wide range of offences, including fraud up to and including June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK.However, data held centrally does not include if the fraud offence involved online activity. This information may be held in the court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

How many convictions for burglary there were in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions for a wide range of offences, including burglary up to and including June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK.This can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Prosecutions and Convictions’ tab and using the Offence filter to search ‘Burglary’ in the Outcomes by Offence Tool.

How many people have been convicted of theft offences involving (a) cars and (b) motorcycles in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of offenders convicted of theft offences, including theft of/from a motor vehicle. This can be obtained in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, which can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2023.This information will not include broader offences involving cars and motorcycles however, for example where a car was used as a getaway from a general theft offence. That information may be held on court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

If she will make an estimate of the number of 15-21 year olds that have been prosecuted for violent crime involving a weapon in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of defendants prosecuted, which can be filtered to specific offences and broken down by age range of defendants. This can be obtained in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, which can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2023.However, data held centrally does not include information on whether a weapon was involved in the course of a violent offence. This information may be held on court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

How many people have been convicted of attacks involving acid in the last 12 months.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on prosecutions and convictions for a wide range of offences, including violence against the person, in the Outcomes by Offences data tool. This can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal justice statistics - GOV.UK.However, data held centrally does not include specific offences where acid has been used during the offence. This information may be held in court records but to examine individual court records would be of disproportionate costs.

What recent guidance her Department has provided to the judiciary on the use of custodial sentences in the context of prison capacity.

Sentencing decisions are a matter for the independent judiciary, and judges are able to take into account a range of factors when handing down sentences.

If she will make it her policy to ensure that ongoing mental health support is available to victims of rape (a) before, (b) during and (c) after criminal trials relating to their case.

This Government is committed to ensuring that all victims and survivors of rape and sexual abuse have the information and support they need. This is irrespective of whether they engage with the criminal justice system or not. If they do engage, support is provided irrespective of where they are in the criminal justice system.Between August 2023 and March 2025, the Department provided £26 million through the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund to over 60 specialist support organisations. These organisations offer tailored support programmes, including counselling, therapeutic services, advocacy, outreach and group activities to victims and survivors of all ages to help them cope with their experiences and move forward with their lives.The Ministry of Justice-commissioned 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line also provides victims and survivors access to vital help and information whenever they need it. Free and confidential emotional and listening support is available to all victims and survivors of rape and sexual abuse aged 16 and over. Where appropriate, the service will signpost victims to longer-term support services, including therapeutic support. This service is delivered by Rape Crisis England and Wales.

What recent discussions she has had with the Justice Minister in Northern Ireland on backlogs in court cases.

The Lord Chancellor has not yet had the opportunity to discuss the courts and tribunals across England and Wales, including the backlogs that some jurisdictions face, with the Northern Ireland Justice Minister. Ministry of Justice ministers are hopeful that they will have the opportunity to discuss courts throughput with the Justice Minister soon, either bilaterally or through the Inter-Ministerial Group for Justice.

What recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of recent changes to the early release scheme.

SDS40 is a necessary measure to avoid the collapse of the Criminal Justice System. In designing the measure, we took every possible step to mitigate risk including an 8-week implementation period, clear offence exclusions, and a huge amount of collaboration with partners across the Criminal Justice System.Once released, offenders will be closely monitored by probation and subject to strict licence conditions, which if breached could lead to their immediate recall to prison.Following the first tranche of SDS40 releases that took place on 10 September, the Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service have consulted our frontline and cross government partners on how things went. Following the release of prisoners under Tranche 1 on 10 September 2024 and Tranche 2 on 22 October, we are determined to continue to take every step possible to bring the prisons system under control, reduce reoffending and to keep the public safe.As the Lord Chancellor has previously announced, the change will be reviewed in 18 months.

Whether she has had discussions with her Northern Irish counterpart on the release from prison of convicted murderers.

The Lord Chancellor has not yet had discussions with Ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive, however Ministers wish to meet counterparts soon. Officials regularly discuss a broad range of release policy issues through meetings such as the 5 Nations Forum which convenes quarterly.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of prison workforce numbers.

We know that sufficient and skilled frontline staffing is fundamental to delivering safe, secure, and rehabilitative prison regimes. In England and Wales, we are currently above our target staffing levels for prison officers, although challenges remain in some sites with higher numbers of vacancies. Recruitment efforts will continue at all sites with a current or projected future need, and we have a number of targeted recruitment interventions that can be deployed where needed. Where establishments feel that their staffing levels will affect stability or regime, we look to provide short-term tactical support.HMPPS has also commissioned a workforce delivery project to refresh the current staffing model for prisons, and to help improve our analysis of resource allocation across the system, so we are better able to prioritise our staff resources to improve delivery.