Lucy Rigby MP: speeches

Speeches

• 4 Sept 2025 · Court Backlog · Hansard source

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  The Government inherited a record court backlog in the Crown court. On taking office, we took immediate action, including by funding a record high number of sitting days. The CPS is playing its part to help tackle these issues. That includes setting up a surge team, which has completed more than 12,000 pre-charge decisions, contributing significantly to reducing the backlog.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Court Backlog · Hansard source

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  The CPS is indeed stepping up to the plate to play its role in reducing the backlog. In line with the Government’s manifesto commitment, the CPS is exploring options for expanding the role of non-legal resources to support the system. It has also set up the surge team that I referred to. I can also confirm that the CPS is working with the judiciary, His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service and other criminal justice system stakeholders on a range of local initiatives, including a trial blitz, case resolution courts and weekly listing meetings.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Court Backlog · Hansard source

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  I am extremely sorry to hear about Dani’s case. The previous Government closed over 260 court buildings, and the human cost of the delays as a result of the backlog is really considerable. Victims are waiting years for justice, and attrition in rape cases in particular has more than doubled in the last five years. As I said, on taking office we took immediate action, and not only in relation to sitting days. We have also committed to investing up to £92 million more a year in criminal legal aid, and we are taking action to ensure that there are more specialist counsel available, too.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Economic Crime · Hansard source

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  Fraud is the most common type of crime in the UK. It hurts individuals and businesses and undermines everyone who plays by the rules—and it undermines economic confidence too. That is why the Government have underlined their commitment to tackling economic crime by providing the SFO with an £8 million boost as part of the spending review. That will bolster the SFO’s intelligence capabilities so that it can proactively identify and prosecute the biggest and most complex economic crimes.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Economic Crime · Hansard source

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  I am sorry to hear about the position that the hon. Member’s constituents have been put in. It is a terrible example, which I am sure needs to be looked at much more closely. As he knows, the Serious Fraud Office is operationally independent. As a highly specialist agency, it takes on a number of complex economic crime cases each year. The case he raises may be one for it; it may also be one for Action Fraud. I am more than happy to examine it further and to raise it with the appropriate agency.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Economic Crime · Hansard source

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  I am very sorry to hear about the position that my hon. Friend’s constituent has been put in. I am sorry to say that it encapsulates perfectly why fraud is so damaging. The Government are doing everything in our power to crack down on fraud and corruption and support victims of these crimes. I am more than happy to meet my hon. Friend to see what more might be done in this case.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour · Hansard source

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  I know how much work my hon. Friend has been doing to support justice for Hillsborough families and indeed to push for a Hillsborough law. As she knows, I am unable by convention to disclose whether the Law Officers are advising the Government—nor, of course, the content of any advice—but I know that colleagues are working to bring forward a Hillsborough law as soon as possible.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Duty of Candour · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her question. She has been a resolute and steadfast champion for the Hillsborough families, and indeed for the justice she referred to. As she knows, the Government, including the Prime Minister, have been working closely with the families, and I can confirm that the draft Bill will include a statutory duty of candour for public servants, with criminal sanctions for those who do not comply, and measures to decisively tackle the disparity between the state and bereaved families at inquests. As to timing, I know that everyone is working extremely hard to get the legislation right. The Government hope to be in a position to introduce a Bill to Parliament very soon.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Grooming Gangs · Hansard source

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  As we heard from the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Yardley (Jess Phillips), in the House this week, the Home Office is making important progress in implementing those recommendations. Thousands of cases have been identified for formal review, and priority cases—those involving an allegation of rape—are being reviewed urgently. Increasing funding for the tackling exploitation programme will allow all police forces to access cutting-edge technology to combat these horrific crimes.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Grooming Gangs · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Gentleman will know, listing is a matter for the independent judiciary. However, I can tell him that certain areas have pilot schemes of weekly listing meetings across criminal justice partners to ensure—as he says—that we lessen victim attrition, which is unfortunately far too high as a result of the record court backlog.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Grooming Gangs · Hansard source

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  The grooming and sexual exploitation of young girls in this country is nothing short of sickening, and the Government are doing everything in our power to secure justice for the victims and protect children from further harm. The Crown Prosecution Service has significantly increased prosecutions for child sex offences and recently secured convictions against three offenders for truly hideous crimes going back to 1999.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Grooming Gangs · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman refers to a very important issue, which is why I am pleased to tell him that through our flagship Crime and Policing Bill we are working to implement the key recommendations from the Jay review, one of which is including long-overdue mandatory reporting duties for those working with children. It also includes making grooming an aggravating factor in sentencing and crucial changes to address safeguarding loopholes.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Grooming Gangs · Hansard source

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  I am pleased to tell my hon. Friend that the CPS is working actively alongside the Government to ensure that the criminal convictions for victims of child sexual exploitation, with the offence in that case being prostitution, are being disregarded, which is extremely important.

• 4 Sept 2025 · International Law: Compliance · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member will appreciate that as a Law Officer I cannot talk about the specifics of legal advice to Government. However, he will be aware of paragraph 1.6 of the ministerial code that acknowledges the overarching duty on all Ministers to comply with the law. That obligation is inherent in all the advice that the Law Officers give to Government.

• 4 Sept 2025 · International Law: Compliance · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member will appreciate that I cannot comment on any legal advice that may or may not have been given or, indeed, whether it has been sought. What I can confirm to him is twofold. First, the Government take their legal obligations extremely seriously. Secondly, the Government are very clear in our position that the horrors taking place in Gaza need to be brought to an end.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Criminal Justice System: Technology · Hansard source

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  Unfortunately, my hon. Friend accurately describes the years of neglect of the justice system under the previous Government. She asks specifically about the Legal Aid Agency. The Government took immediate action to bolster the security of the agency’s systems and an injunction was put in place to prohibit the sharing of any breached data. We have put in place contingency plans to ensure that those most in need of legal support can continue to access the help that they need, and we are working at pace to restore services quickly and safely.

• 4 Sept 2025 · Criminal Justice System: Technology · Hansard source

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  Better use of technology is key to reforming all our public services, including the criminal justice system, from the police and the CPS to our courts, prisons and probation services. This Government are absolutely determined to harness all the power and potential of new technology to the benefit of the public, those who work in our public services and, of course, the public purse.