Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP: written questions
1095 published records · newest first.
Written questions
HM Courts and Tribunals Service: StaffMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75476More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of staffing levels in HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
Answer: All courts and tribunals budgets are set as a consequence of the annual Concordat process through which Ministers and the independent judiciary agree key decisions on funding and operational capacity of HM Courts and Tribunals Service. This process is sup...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCourts: StaffMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75474More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate she has made of the number of hearings that were adjourned due to a shortage of court (a) clerks, (b) ushers and (c) administrative staff in the last 12 months.
Answer: Data on trial effectiveness at the criminal courts is available here: Criminal court statistics quarterly: January to March 2025 - GOV.UKWhile HMCTS and the Ministry of Justice records and publishes data on reasons for ineffective hearings, including reas...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCourts: StaffMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75473More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to (a) recruit and (b) retain court staff.
Answer: To support HM Courts & Tribunals Service's (HMCTS) ability to recruit, we have invested in programmes to reach a diverse demographic and increase our ability to fill critical roles. We use marketing platforms to help reach more candidates for harder t...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordJudiciary: VacanciesMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75472More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Crown Court sitting days were lost due to a shortage of (a) judges and (b) recorders in the last 12 months.
Answer: Data on timeliness and ineffective trials (including judge/magistrate availability) at the criminal courts is available here: Criminal court statistics quarterly: January to March 2025 - GOV.UK. There is no evidence to suggest that judicial vacancies have...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordJudiciary: VacanciesMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75471More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of judicial vacancies on the timeliness of hearings in the Crown Court.
Answer: Data on timeliness and ineffective trials (including judge/magistrate availability) at the criminal courts is available here: Criminal court statistics quarterly: January to March 2025 - GOV.UK. There is no evidence to suggest that judicial vacancies have...
Answered 15 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordLegal Profession: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75470More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will publish a summary of her recent discussions with her Indian counterpart on the regulation of UK lawyers in India.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordLegal Profession: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75469More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations she has received from the Bar Council of England and Wales on access to the Indian legal services market.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBarristers: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75468More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has had discussions with (a) her Indian counterpart and (b) the Bar Council of India on ensuring that disclosure requirements for foreign lawyers are consistent with barristers’ obligations of confide
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBarristers: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75467More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has had discussions with her Indian counterpart on the impact of (a) registration and (b) processing fees on the ability of barristers to participate in arbitration proceedings in India.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBarristers: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 5 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75466More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has had discussions with her Indian counterpart on fly-in fly-out provisions for UK barristers in that country.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBarristers: IndiaMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75139More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions her Department has had with the (a) government and (b) Bar Council of India on regulatory barriers facing barristers from England and Wales.
Answer: The Ministry of Justice has regularly engaged the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice and Bar Council of India (BCI) at Ministerial and official level in recent years to advocate for the interests of UK barristers and advocates, often in conjunction with t...
Answered 10 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordVisasHome OfficeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75138More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has issued guidance on expediting visa applications for (a) witnesses, (b) litigants and (c) legal representatives required to attend court hearings in the UK.
Answer: UKVI will always seek to ensure those who need to attend court are able to do so in line with the Immigration Rules and wider court instructions.All short term visit visas are governed by our published service standards. These can be found here: Visitors ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordVisas: CommonwealthHome OfficeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75137More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the time taken to issue visas on the ability of Commonwealth citizens to participate effectively in proceedings before UK courts.
Answer: UKVI will always seek to ensure those who need to attend court are able to do so in line with the Immigration Rules and wider court instructions.All short term visit visas are governed by our published service standards. These can be found here: Visitors ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordVisasHome OfficeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75136More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to prioritise visa applications from overseas parties required to appear before UK courts.
Answer: UKVI will always seek to ensure those who need to attend court are able to do so in line with the Immigration Rules and wider court instructions.All short term visit visas are governed by our published service standards. These can be found here: Visitors ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordVisas: CommonwealthHome OfficeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75135More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate she has made of average waiting times for visa applications from Commonwealth citizens required to attend court proceedings in the UK.
Answer: UKVI will always seek to ensure those who need to attend court are able to do so in line with the Immigration Rules and wider court instructions.All short term visit visas are governed by our published service standards. These can be found here: Visitors ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordPrivy Council: CommonwealthMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75134More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Privy Council remains adequately resourced to deal with cases from Commonwealth jurisdictions in a timely manner.
Answer: The Commonwealth countries which continue to use the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) as their final court of appeal are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Brunei, Cook Islands and Niue, Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati, Mauritius, St Kitts and Nev...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordPrivy Council Office Judicial Committee: CommonwealthMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75133More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has had discussions with Commonwealth partners on future arrangements for appellate jurisdiction currently exercised by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Answer: The Commonwealth countries which continue to use the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) as their final court of appeal are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Brunei, Cook Islands and Niue, Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati, Mauritius, St Kitts and Nev...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordPrivy Council Office Judicial Committee: CommonwealthMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75132More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which Commonwealth countries continue to use the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as their final court of appeal.
Answer: The Commonwealth countries which continue to use the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) as their final court of appeal are Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Brunei, Cook Islands and Niue, Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati, Mauritius, St Kitts and Nev...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordBarristers: Fees and ChargesMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75131More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if her Department will establish an independent body to review and make recommendations on barristers’ fees for publicly funded criminal work.
Answer: This Government recognises that legal aid is a vital part of the justice system. It enables those individuals who need it most to have access to publicly funded legal assistance, in order to uphold their legal rights. This Government has made a significan...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordLegal Aid Scheme: Criminal ProceedingsMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75129More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of criminal legal aid fees in ensuring sufficient numbers of publicly funded barristers are available to meet demand.
Answer: This Government recognises the vital importance of legal aid and the need to ensure an adequate supply of suitably qualified criminal barristers and solicitors. Since 2022, funding for defence advocates has increased by 17%. In December 2024, we also anno...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordCrown Court: TrialsMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75128More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of Trial Blitz style listing schemes in reducing backlogs in other Crown Court centres beyond Greater Manchester.
Answer: Listing is a judicial responsibility. The judiciary deploy measures, including the concentration of judicial and court resources to hear a specific cohort of cases over a defined period, as part of ongoing efforts to maximise throughput. HMCTS officials s...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordRemote HearingsMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75127More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to expand the use of virtual hearings for short matters.
Answer: We recognise the importance of utilising technology to improve the efficiency of criminal and civil court proceedings. That is why, in May 2025, HM Courts & Tribunals Service published its Remote Participation Approach, setting out its principles for ...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordJudges: RetirementMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75126More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will review restrictions on the number of sitting days available to retired judges under the age of 75.
Answer: The number of days that a retired judge can sit is governed by HM Treasury’s abatement policy which ensures that pension benefits and ongoing income do not exceed a judge’s pre-retirement income. Abatement applies to pension benefits from the final salary...
Answered 12 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordOffenders: RehabilitationMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75124More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential savings to the public purse of a diversion model that redirects (a) low-level and (b) first-time offenders from Crown Court proceedings.
Answer: This Government inherited a record and rising courts backlog. As of December 2024, the Crown Court outstanding caseload was over 74,000. As of March 2025, the caseload continued to increase, with a new series peak of 76,957. It is clear that fundamental r...
Answered 9 Sept 2025
Original Parliament recordOffenders: RehabilitationMinistry of JusticeTabled 4 Sept 2025AnsweredUIN 75122More
Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what consideration her Department has given to the potential merits of increasing the use of (a) diversion schemes based on (i) deferred prosecution agreements and (ii) referral orders and (b) other diversion sch
Answer: This Government inherited a record and rising courts backlog. As of December 2024, the Crown Court outstanding caseload was over 74,000. As of March 2025, the caseload continued to increase, with a new series peak of 76,957. It is clear that fundamental r...
Answered 9 Sept 2025
Original Parliament record
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