Westminster Archive

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): The inspirational ladies football player, Fara Williams, was homeless at 17, but went on to play 157 times for England, including as captain, and is now at Arsenal. Fara supports Centrepoint’s appeal for funds to set up the first national freephone helpline for 16 to 25-year-olds who are homeless and at risk of living a life on the … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate she has made of the proportion of cases that will take place in virtual hearings in each jurisdiction in each of the next five years. Oliver Heald The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice: We are investing close to �1 billion to reform and digitise our courts and … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what funding her Department provides for dispute resolution within the justice system; what progress her Department has made in its aim to settle more disputes out of court; and if she will make a statement. Oliver Heald The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice: The government … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 1.5 of her Department's paper on Transforming Our Justice System, published in September 2016, what estimate she has made of the funding required to train and remunerate court staff to make judicial decisions. Oliver Heald The Minister of State, Ministry of … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many full-time equivalent staff have been employed in Crown courts in each year since 2010. Oliver Heald The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice: Information on the number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) staff employed by HMCTS by jurisdiction in each of the last four years is set … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice) I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on bringing forward the Bill. I have supported this proposal for a long time, as it is all about equality. I had a private Member’s Bill, which did not get as far as his, that would have corrected another anomaly in the law by putting mothers’ names and occupations on marriage certificates. Edward … [Read more...]

It is always a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Evans. I thank the Chair of the Justice Committee, Robert Neill, for his customary eloquent delivery. I commend the work of his Committee, of which I used to be a member, and thank all the hon. Members who have given some tremendous contributions today. I will do my very best not to repeat anything that has been said. … [Read more...]

I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to make provision for the creation of mutual guarantee societies, for their membership by small and medium-sized businesses for the purpose of lending to and by such business and for their operation; and for connected purposes. I am a Labour and Co-operative Member of Parliament. I am proud that I am introducing this … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): What recent assessment he has made of the (a) accuracy and (b) efficiency of contracted-out health assessments for employment and support allowance and personal independence payments. Penny Mordaunt The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions: Over 93.5% of assessments for personal independence payment and over 90% … [Read more...]

Christina Rees Shadow Minister (Justice): I thank my hon. Friend Peter Kyle for asking the urgent question and the Minister for his response. I recognise that this issue unites the House. The practice of unrepresented parties against whom domestic violence is either proved or alleged questioning victims in court has been raised repeatedly in the House and in the media. … [Read more...]