Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)

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Ministry of Justice
Welsh: Y Weinyddiaeth Gyfiawnder
Ministry of Justice logo (United Kingdom).svg
HomeOffice QueenAnnesGate.jpg
102 Petty France, Westminster
Ministerial Department overview
Formed2007
Preceding Ministerial Department
Jurisdiction Government of the United Kingdom
Headquarters 102 Petty France
Westminster, London
EmployeesOver 77,000
Annual budget£6.3 billion & £600 million capital expenditure in 2018–19 [1]
Secretary of State responsible
Ministerial Department executive
Child agencies
Website gov.uk/moj

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is headed by the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (a combined position). Its stated priorities are to reduce re-offending and protect the public, to provide access to justice, to increase confidence in the justice system, and to uphold people's civil liberties. [2] The Secretary of State is the minister responsible to Parliament for the judiciary, the court system, prisons, and probation in England and Wales, with some additional UK-wide responsibilities, e.g., the UK Supreme Court and judicial appointments by the Crown. The department is also responsible for areas of constitutional policy not transferred in 2010 to the Deputy Prime Minister, human rights law, and information rights law across the UK.

Contents

The British Ministry of Justice may also oversee the administration of justice in Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man (which are Crown Dependencies), as well as Saint Helena, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha, and the Falkland Islands (which are British Overseas Territories). [3] [4] [5] Gibraltar, another British overseas territory, has its own Ministry of Justice. [6]

The ministry was formed in May 2007 when some functions of the Home Secretary were combined with the Department for Constitutional Affairs. [7] The latter had replaced the Lord Chancellor's Department in 2003.

The expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Justice are scrutinised by the Justice Select Committee. [8]

Responsibilities

UK-wide

Prior to the formation of the Coalition Government in May 2010, [9] [10] the ministry handled relations between the British Government and the three devolved administrations: the Northern Ireland Executive; the Scottish Government; and the Welsh Government.

Responsibility for devolution was then transferred to the re-established position of Deputy Prime Minister, based in the Cabinet Office. He also assumed responsibility for political and constitutional reform, including reform of the House of Lords, the West Lothian Question, electoral policy, political party funding reform and royal succession.

After 2015, responsibility for devolution was transferred back to the ministry as well as the three offices for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland until 2019 when it was transferred to the Minister for the Union in the Prime Minister's Office. Reform of the House of Lords was given to the Leader of the House of Lords and the Cabinet Office. The West Lothian Question was given to the Leader of the House of Commons as was electoral policy and political party funding reform which is now handled by the Speakers Committee on Electoral Reform and the House Leader. Royal succession was given back to the ministry.

The Secretary of State for Justice had responsibility for a commission on a British bill of rights. The British bill of rights was a plan to implement human rights through national law, instead of the European Convention on Human Rights being part of UK law through the Human Rights Act 1998. This would have also ended the binding authority the European Court of Human Rights has over British courts. [11] This was later shelved, but recently, this has gained support since the UK left the European Union.[ citation needed ]

The Ministry of Justice retained the following UK-wide remit:

As the office of the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, the ministry is also responsible for policy relating to Lord Lieutenants (i.e. the personal representatives of the King), "non-delegated" royal, church and hereditary issues, and other constitutional issues, although the exact definition of these is unclear. [12]

The post of Lord Chancellor of Ireland was abolished in 1922 though Northern Ireland remains part of the UK. The authority of the Lord Chancellor of Ireland was transferred to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. [13]

England and Wales only

The vast majority of the Ministry of Justice's work takes place in England and Wales. The ministry has no responsibility for devolved criminal justice policy, courts, prisons or probation matters in either Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Within the jurisdiction of England and Wales, the Ministry of Justice is responsible for ensuring that all suspected offenders (including children and young people) are appropriately dealt with from the time they are arrested, until convicted offenders have completed their sentence. [14] The ministry is therefore responsible for all aspects of the criminal law, including the scope and content of criminal offences. Its responsibilities extend to the commissioning of prison services (through the National Offender Management Service), rehabilitation and reducing offending, victim support, the probation service and the out-of-court system, the Youth Justice Board, sentencing and parole policy, criminal injuries compensation and the Criminal Cases Review Commission. The Attorney General for England and Wales (also the Advocate General for Northern Ireland) works with the Ministry of Justice to develop criminal justice policy. [15]

Other responsibilities limited to England and Wales include the administration of all courts and tribunals, land registration, legal aid and the regulation of legal services, coroners and the investigation of deaths, administrative justice and public law, the maintenance of the judiciary, public guardianship and mental incapacity, supervision of restricted patients detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 and civil law and justice, including the family justice system and claims management regulation.

Crown dependencies

The Ministry of Justice is the department that facilitates communication between the Crown dependencies i.e. Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, and HM Government. These are self-governing possessions of the British monarch, through his titles as Duke of Normandy in the Channel Islands and Lord of Mann in the Isle of Man.

It processes legislation for Royal Assent passed by the insular legislative assemblies and consults the Islands on extending UK legislation to them. It also ensures that relevant UK legislation is extended to the islands smoothly. [16]

Ministers

The Ministers in the Ministry of Justice are as follows, with cabinet ministers in bold: [17]

MinisterPortraitOfficePortfolio
The Rt Hon. Shabana Mahmood KC MP Shabana Mahmood Official Cabinet Portrait, July 2024 (cropped) 2.jpg Secretary of State for Justice
Lord Chancellor
  • Oversight of cross-cutting emergency issues, responses supported by other ministers according to portfolio
  • Oversight of international business and future relations with the EU
  • MoJ support for the Union.
  • Resourcing of the department
  • Functions of the Lord Chancellor
  • Judicial policy including pay, pensions and diversity (these and other operational decisions affecting the judiciary are reserved to the Lord Chancellor)
  • Corporate services
The Rt Hon. The Lord Timpson James Timpson Official Cabinet Portrait, July 2024 (cropped).jpg Minister of State for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending
  • Prison capacity and related policy
  • Prison operations, policy, reform, and industrial relations
  • His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service administration
  • Probation demand
  • Probation policy and operations, industrial relations, and transparency
  • Prisoner Escort Contracts
  • Reducing Reoffending
  • Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) schemes
  • Electronic Monitoring (EM)
  • Foreign National Offenders
  • Home Detention Curfew (HDC)
  • Offender Cohorts
  • Female Offenders
  • Offender health and drugs
  • Parole based victim engagement.
  • Parole policy
  • Counter Terrorism
  • Sustainability
  • Cross-cutting Digital, Data and transformation
Heidi Alexander MP Heidi alexander portrait 2024.jpg Minister of State for Courts and Legal Services
  • Criminal Courts and Criminal Court recovery
  • Court Reform (including artificial intelligence, modernisation, and digital reform)
  • His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service administration
  • Legal Aid
  • Legal Aid Agency administration
  • Legal Services
  • Criminal Cases Review Commission administration
  • Civil Justice
  • Modern Justice System: Legal Support; Dispute Resolution
  • Tribunals Policy (incl. fees)
  • Irregular Migration
  • Probate
  • Miscarriages of Justice
  • Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation
  • Office for the Public Guardian administration
  • Mental Capacity
  • Secondary Legislation
  • Press/ Communications
  • MoJ Mission lead for Kickstart economic growth
Alex Davies-Jones MP Alex Davies-Jones.jpg Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Victims
  • Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG)
  • Criminal Law (incl. Child Sexual Abuse)
  • Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
  • Rape and Serious Sexual Offences
  • Victims and Witnesses inc. Victims’ Commissioner
  • Hillsborough
  • Coroners and Death Management
  • Commons Family Minister
  • Cross-cutting corporate portfolio (incl. Ministerial Disability Champion Meetings, Diversity & Inclusion, Covid-19 Inquiry, Public Appointments, Senior Civil Service HR)
  • MoJ Mission lead for Take back our streets
The Rt Hon. The Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede Official portrait of Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede crop 2, 2019.jpg Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice
  • Family Justice and Marriage and Divorce
  • All Lords Business (except PPP)
  • Private International Law
  • International Criminal Justice
  • Constitution
  • Crown Dependencies
  • Devolution and the Union
  • EU Retained Law policy.
  • Human Rights
  • International
  • Judicial Review
  • Overseas Territories
Nic Dakin MP Official portrait of Nic Dakin MP crop 2, 2024.jpg Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sentencing
  • Sentencing
  • Youth Justice
  • Youth Hubs
  • Commons Prisons, Probation and Parole
  • Transparency
  • MoJ Mission lead for Breakdown barriers to opportunity

The Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Justice is Dame Antonia Romeo, who is by virtue of her office also Clerk of the Crown in Chancery.

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Budget 2018 (PDF). London: HM Treasury. 2018. pp. 23–24. Retrieved 30 July 2019.
  2. ↑ List of Ministerial Responsibilities (PDF). London: Cabinet Office. 2010. p. 44.
  3. ↑ "Crown Dependencies: Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man". GOV.UK. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  4. ↑ "The Overseas Territories: Security, Success and Sustainability" (PDF). Foreign & Commonwealth Office. June 2012.
  5. ↑ "Chief Justice of the Falkland Islands | Judicial Appointments Commission". www.judicialappointments.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 18 July 2018. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  6. ↑ "Departments & services | Government of Gibraltar". www.gibraltar.gov.gi. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  7. ↑ National Audit Office (6 July 2010). Ministry of Justice, Financial Management Report (PDF). TSO. p. 10. ISBN   978-0-10-296533-9.
  8. ↑ "Role - Justice Committee". UK Parliament. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  9. ↑ "Conservative Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement". Conservative Party. 12 May 2010. Archived from the original on 15 May 2010. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
  10. ↑ "Conservative Liberal Democrat Coalition Agreement". Liberal Democrats. 12 May 2010. Archived from the original on 11 December 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
  11. ↑ "Cabinet Office". List of Government departments and ministers. Cabinet Office. Retrieved 22 May 2012.
  12. ↑ "Ministry of Justice". List of Government departments and ministers. Cabinet Office. Retrieved 22 May 2012.
  13. ↑ "Secretary of State for Northern Ireland – GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  14. ↑ "Home Office to be split in two". BBC News Online. BBC. 29 March 2007. Retrieved 29 March 2007.
  15. ↑ "Attorney General's Office - About us". Gov.uk. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  16. ↑ "Ministry of Justice – What we do – Crown dependencies" . Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  17. ↑ "Our ministers". GOV.UK. Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
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