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Crown Prosecution Service

Volume 486: debated on Thursday 15 January 2009

To ask the Solicitor-General in respect of how many cases the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales (a) advised the police, (b) discontinued after charge but before trial and (c) proceeded to trial in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006 and (iii) 2007. (243064)

The following table shows at (a) the number of defendants in respect of whom the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) advised the police or took a pre-charge decision in each of the three years in question.

The table also shows the number of defendants prosecuted by the CPS, together with the outcome of proceedings. These cases include both those charged or summonsed by the police, and those in which a pre-charge decision to charge was made by the CPS. Case outcomes include at (b) the number and proportion of defendants whose case was dropped by the CPS before evidence was heard by a court, including those formally discontinued in advance of a hearing. Shown at (c) are the number and proportion which proceeded to a trial, together with the outcome of the trial. Finally, the table shows the number and proportion of defendants whose case resulted in a conviction (including guilty pleas as well as convictions after trial) and unsuccessful outcomes, representing all outcomes other than a conviction.

Crown Prosecution Service case outcomes data

2005

2006

2007

Volume

Percentage

Volume

Percentage

Volume

Percentage

(a) Pre-charge decisions/Advice given

556,961

579,081

564,851

Administrative finalisation1

40,654

3.5

29,264

2.7

22,269

2.1

Discharged committal

2,705

0.2

2,400

0.2

2,255

0.2

(b) Prosecutions dropped2

139,868

12.1

125,102

11.4

112,556

10.5

Of which:

Discontinued

41,105

3.5

40,463

3.7

37,044

3.5

Indictment stayed

77

0.0

188

0.0

216

0.0

Lie on file

670

0.1

589

0.1

636

0.1

Offered no evidence

46,666

4.0

45,379

4.1

43,702

4.1

Prosecution stayed

96

0.0

165

0.0

198

0.0

Withdrawn

51,254

4.4

38,318

3.5

30,760

2.9

Guilty pleas

712,397

61.5

699,888

63.6

711,251

66.3

Proved in absence

169,270

14.6

155,473

14.1

140,756

13.1

(c) Trials3

93,508

8.1

87,737

8.0

83,230

7.8

Of which:

Conviction after trial

64,800

5.6

58,702

5.3

55,900

5.2

Acquitted

28,708

2.5

29,035

2.6

27,330

2.5

Convictions

946,467

81.7

914,063

83.1

907,907

84.7

Unsuccessful outcomes

211,935

18.3

185,801

16.9

164,410

15.3

Total prosecutions

1,158,402

1,099,864

1,072,317

1 Administrative finalisations comprise outcomes where the defendant cannot be traced, or has died, or been found unfit to plead.

2 Prosecutions dropped are all proceedings halted before evidence is heard.

3 Trials comprise cases where the defendant pleaded not guilty and evidence was heard by the court.

To ask the Solicitor-General what the average time taken by Crown Prosecution Service lawyers in England and Wales (a) preparing a case for trial and (b) attending at trial was in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006 and (iii) 2007. (243065)

The Crown Prosecution Service maintains no central record of the time committed by lawyers to the preparation of cases for trial or to trial attendance. The information is not recorded on individual case files.