Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 8
8
Acknowledged
Paragraph: 49
Review legal framework for custody time limits to prevent excessive pre-trial detention
Recommendation
Despite there being a legal framework in place that is intended to ensure that people who are detained are brought to trial as soon as possible, in practice a large proportion of the remand population is held beyond the custody time limit of six months. We are very concerned by the recent figures showing that 770 prisoners have been held in custodial remand for over two years. The Government should review the legal framework for custody time limits to determine whether it is effective in ensuring that defendants are not deprived of their liberty for longer than is reasonable. It should be standard practice that custody time limits are strictly adhered to except in exceptional circumstances. In particular, an unconvicted defendant should not spend more time on remand than they would be likely to receive from any eventual custodial sentence, having regard to the relevant sentencing guidelines.
Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation in principle, but stated that current data on remand reasons is insufficient. It committed to monitoring and assessing data quality in the new Common Platform digital system to explore future data capture on remand decisions.
Paragraph Reference:
49
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
We accept this recommendation in principle. The Ministry of Justice currently publishes court remand data within the Criminal Justice Statistics, however, source information on reasons for remand is not readily available in a way that would enable this recommendation to be acted upon immediately. The Common Platform is a digital case management system designed to manage and share criminal case information more effectively. Its users include the judiciary, HMCTS staff and professional court users such as defence lawyers and the Crown Prosecution Service. The roll out of the Common Platform provides the potential opportunity to explore a wider range of data being captured in the courts and this may include greater detail on remand decisions. We will continue to monitor and assess the quality of the data in Common Platform on remand reasons, particularly when a greater volume of case data becomes available. Prisons