Attorney General written question – answered at on 17 December 2018.
Matthew Offord
Conservative, Hendon
To ask the Attorney General, what assessment he has made of trends in the number of cases of alleged hate crimes ending before going to court as a result of such complaints being withdrawn.
Robert Buckland
The Solicitor-General
In 2017-18, the number of non-convictions due to complainant retraction was 188, down from 198 the previous year. This accounted for 1.3% of all completed hate crime prosecutions. The Crown Prosecution Service is working closely with criminal justice partners to ensure the support offered to complainants and witnesses in hate crime cases is tailored to meet their individual needs.
The Majority of hate crime prosecutions (75.4%) result in a guilty plea from defendants, reducing the need for complainants and witnesses to give evidence in court. However, where live evidence is required, the CPS is committed to supporting them to give their best evidence. This includes consideration of whether they would benefit from special measures such as giving evidence behind a screen or via a video link.
Yes2 people think so
No0 people think not
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The Attorney General, assisted by the Solicitor General, is the chief legal adviser to the Government. The Attorney General also has certain public interest functions, for example, in taking action to protect charities.
The Attorney General has overall responsibility for The Treasury Solicitor's Department, superintends the Director of Public Prosecutions as head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and the Director of Public Prosecutions in Northern Ireland. The Law Officers answer for these Departments in Parliament.
The Attorney General and the Solicitor General also deal with questions of law arising on Government Bills and with issues of legal policy. They are concerned with all major international and domestic litigation involving the Government and questions of European Community and International Law as they may affect Her Majesty's Government.
see also, http://www.lslo.gov.uk/
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