Lucy Rigby MP: speeches

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Speeches

23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I have already addressed that point.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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As I have already stated, the Law Officers’ convention does not permit me to reveal when the Attorney General has been asked for advice or when he has advised.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I am afraid I could not be more clear: I have already said that where the Attorney General has conflicts, he will recuse himself.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I agree with my hon. Friend, and I am grateful to him for making that point. As I said earlier, barristers are quite simply not their clients, and I have quoted the words of the current Conservative shadow Attorney General.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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The hon. Member will know that the Law Officers’ convention means that I cannot confirm that the Attorney General has advised or whether his advice has been sought on any matter.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I do not agree, I am afraid.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I agree wholeheartedly with my hon. Friend.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question, and I agree with her.
23 Jan 2025 · Attorney General’s Office: Conflicts of Interest · Hansard source
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. The shadow Solicitor General raised the previous experience of the Attorney General. Lord Hermer is a very experienced barrister, and during his time in private practice—prior to his appointment to Government—he represented high-profile clients in a number of cases. It is a central and well-understood aspect of the British legal system, as she knows, that barristers are required to accept instructions if they are available and qualified to do so—the well-known “cab rank” principle. She will also be very aware that, put simply, barristers are not their clients. As the Bar Council states: “Barristers do not choose their clients, nor do they associate themselves with their clients’ opinions or behaviour by virtue of representing them.” In recent days, the Opposition have cynically linked the Attorney General with some of his previous clients. I grew up on military bases in armed forces communities in the 1980s, and I remember what it felt like when my dad had to check underneath the car before every single journey we made. I note that because it is the backdrop against which I say that I would defend with every fibre of my being the duty of any barrister in this country, including Lord Hermer, to defend any client before any court, as we all should. I will end by restating the principle in words that I think are particularly powerful: “Don’t judge a surgeon by their patients, a journalist by their interviewees—or a lawyer by their clients.” Those were the words of the current Conservative shadow Attorney General.
19 Dec 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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This Government have pledged to halve violence against women and girls within a decade as part of our plan for change, and securing prosecutions will be key to that. Our commitment to tackling violence against women and girls in this way is unprecedented, and it will require a wholesale change in how we think about and deal with these kinds of offences. Only through a truly cross-Government effort can it be achieved. As Solicitor General, I will work with colleagues in the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office to ensure that we deliver on that commitment.
19 Dec 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I am grateful to the shadow Solicitor General for her kind words. She brings an awful lot of experience and expertise to her role, and I look forward to working constructively with her. She raises the issue of violence against women and girls, and refers to Crown court sitting days. I said earlier that I am very pleased that an additional 2,000 Crown court sitting days were added by the Lord Chancellor yesterday. That is very important, because it will allow the fast-tracking that she refers to of the backlog in our courts.
19 Dec 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. We are strengthening the law and the criminal justice system to improve prosecutions for violence against women and girls, and to better support victims.
19 Dec 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. He has been working on this issue with survivors of economic abuse, and I know that he cares about it very deeply. Domestic abuse can take many insidious forms, and we must do everything we can to ensure that we are equipped to spot it and tackle it. The guidance to which he refers was updated earlier this year and is under regular review. I can also confirm that the CPS will take part in a further knowledge-sharing event on economic abuse, which will be delivered for police and prosecutors as part of the domestic abuse joint justice plan.
19 Dec 2024 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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Timeliness is clearly key, and the hon. Lady is absolutely right to refer to our commitment to halving violence against women and girls within a decade. We will take urgent action, building on the urgent action we have already taken. In November, for example, pilots of the new domestic abuse protection orders began with three police forces, enabling them to provide additional protection to victims. The hon. Lady will know that the police and the CPS have launched their domestic abuse joint justice plan. Improvements in partnership working under the plan have already led to a modest increase in referrals of domestic abuse cases from the police to the CPS, setting a strong foundation for future improvements.
19 Dec 2024 · Misdemeanours · Hansard source
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The Government are committed to tackling criminality of all types. We have set out our plan for change, which includes putting 13,000 more police officers and PCSOs on the beat, and bringing back neighbourhood policing. Next year, the Crown Prosecution Service will receive an additional £49 million of funding to help recruit and train more prosecutors, enabling them to focus on securing justice in all cases, from minor offences right through to the most serious crimes.
19 Dec 2024 · Misdemeanours · Hansard source
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I can give that assurance. The hon. Gentleman calls this kind of crime low level. I know from experiences in my constituency that these issues can affect daily life and really blight communities, so yes he has my assurance.
19 Dec 2024 · Misdemeanours · Hansard source
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The hon. Member is right to raise this important and pressing issue. We know that those who commit such crimes, including crimes in our rural communities, are some of the most manipulative criminals in society. The Crown Prosecution Service supplies early investigative advice to law enforcement agencies to build strong cases and ensure the robust prosecution of those involved in county lines. I am determined that we will continue to do everything we can to prevent young people from being drawn into crime and to stop this exploitation.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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Mr Speaker, I will start by taking this opportunity to wish you, your team and Members across the House a very merry Christmas. Every single victim of knife crime is one too many, and this Christmas there will be some constituents, including my own, facing the heartbreaking reality of a loved one who is no longer with them due to knife crime. That is why, as part of our plan for change, the Government are 100% committed to tackling knife crime.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise this important matter. Knife-enabled robberies surged under the previous Government, which is why the Home Secretary has made tackling these offences an urgent priority. Enforcement is key, and that is why we are putting police back on the beat with a named officer for every neighbourhood.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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The hon. Gentleman is right to highlight these issues in this House. Key to prevention and early intervention is our programme of young futures hubs and prevention partnerships. Our young futures hubs will bring together services to improve the ways that young people can access the support they need, and our prevention partnerships will proactively identify the young people most at risk and map youth service provision to ensure there is a clear understanding of the support available in each area.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend makes a powerful point. Many of our constituents will have gone through the same pain as his. That is why we are taking strong action on knife crime, banning lethal weapons and working to ensure that dangerous blades do not end up in the wrong hands. This September, it became illegal to possess zombie-style knives and machetes, and we are bringing forward legislation to ban the ninja swords to which he refers.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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I am very sorry to hear about that shocking incident in my hon. Friend’s constituency, and she is right to raise it in this House. These kinds of weapons have absolutely no place on our streets. That is why this Government took quick action to ensure it was illegal to possess machetes. I hope and expect that there will be timely prosecutions in this case.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right that knife crime is still too high—more than 50,000 instances in the year to June 2024. He is also right to highlight that this Government are taking strong action to combat knife crime. We know that effective local policing is vital to tackling knife crime, which is why we are putting 13,000 more police and police community support officers on our streets, because we are determined to make our streets safe. The Home Secretary has also commissioned a rapid review to understand how these weapons are sold online and delivered to under-18s and identify gaps in legislation and the most effective ways to stop this.
19 Dec 2024 · Knife Offences · Hansard source
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I am grateful to the hon. Member for his question. He will appreciate that I do not have those statistics to hand, but I am more than happy to write to him.
19 Dec 2024 · Freight Crime · Hansard source
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Freight crime poses significant challenges to the logistics and transport sectors, affecting businesses, communities and our economy. This Government recognise the importance of addressing this issue, and the Crown Prosecution Service will always seek to prosecute serious offending when the relevant legal tests are met. Prosecutors can also apply for compensation to be paid to victims and, in appropriate cases, can seek the seizure of assets that represent the proceeds of crime.

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