Select committee: Justice Committee
Conclusion 4
3rd Report - Leadership of the Criminal Cases Review Commission
Published 23 May 2025
Addressed to Ministry of Justice
Justice Committee Leadership of the Criminal Cases Review Commission All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The Committee does not understand why the CCRC would consider itself bound by the government’s General Election guidance. Even if it did consider the guidance applicable, we do not understand why applying that guidance would lead to the conclusion that the report should not be published, given that this was not a party-political issue. The report was concerned with the CCRC’s approach to Andrew Malkinson’s applications, not with government decision-making. We accept that after the General Election was called on 22 May 2024, the CCRC might have decided to check with the Ministry of Justice whether the Henley report could be published. However, we were not convinced by Karen Kneller and Amanda Pearce’s explanation that publication was impossible. Given the CCRC’s constitutional independence and the importance of the report, the leadership of the CCRC should have arrived at their own view as to whether publication at the earliest possible date was necessary, whatever the guidance or the Ministry of Justice said. (Conclusion, Paragraph 25)
From: Justice Committee, 3rd Report - Leadership of the Criminal Cases Review Commission (HC 749), 23 May 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 29 July 2025 (deadline 23 July 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government welcomes the Committee's report, agrees on the importance of strong CCRC leadership, and says many conclusions are "rightly for the CCRC and its new interim Chair to consider".
- The Ministry agrees the handling of the Malkinson case and the Henley report has damaged the CCRC's reputation, and says the Lord Chancellor has tasked interim Chair Dame Vera Baird with a review of its operation and leadership.
- On the section 23 disclosure prohibition, the Ministry has asked the interim Chair to consider it and, "if she concludes that this is hampering the effectiveness of the CCRC", to include it in her recommendations.
- On funding, it notes the budget has risen to £10.1 million for 2025/26 and says requests for increases "will be considered" through departmental processes, while it is "right to expect" the CCRC to first use existing funding cost-effectively.
- The CCRC Chair has been added to the list of roles subject to pre-appointment scrutiny, and the department "will consult the Committee" on the permanent Chair's time commitment and other aspects of the recruitment campaign.