Downing Street Says » Criminal Justice System

» Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Criminal Justice System

Asked if lessons learnt from the way the courts worked on cases following the riots would be applied more widely, the PMS said that the courts had been highly effective at processing a large number of cases quickly. The PMS said that this was not only efficient, but sent an important message demonstrating that we could deliver swift justice. He stressed that the Government was determined to learn lessons from that process.

Asked how lessons could be learnt while many cases were still ongoing, the PMS said he would not predict what will happen in particular court cases, but emphasised that the Government was reflecting on the experiences of recent weeks and would continue to reflect in the weeks to come.

Asked if sitting hours would be considered, the PMS said that there was already work underway to increase the efficiency of the criminal justice system. The PMS reiterated that the Government could learn the lessons from the recent weeks and that Ministers were determined to make the criminal justice system more efficient.

Asked about who was involved in the Quad process, the PMS confirmed that work on tackling gangs was already underway and lead by Home Secretary Theresa May and Work and Pensions Secretary Ian Duncan-Smith, and that there was a separate Ministerial group working in that area. He said the Quad would look at a range of issues across the policy waterfront to help shape the Government’s response to the riots. This would include problem families, the welfare system, supporting people to get in to work and reducing crime and reoffending. He stressed that some of this work was already underway, but that the Government would want to look at these plans in light of what happened in August.

Asked if the Quad was meant to be an arbitration body, the PMS said that this was sometimes the case. In this case it was a way to ensure a strong coordinated policy response to the riots that involved the PM, Deputy Prime Minister and other departments.

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