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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
Headquarters, 102 Petty France, London
Ministerial Department overview
Formed2007
Preceding Ministerial Department
JurisdictionGovernment of the United Kingdom
Headquarters102 Petty France
Westminster, London
Employeesover 77,000
Annual budget£6.3 billion & £600 million capital expenditure in 2018–19[1]
Minister responsible
Ministerial Department executive
Child agencies
WebsiteOfficial website

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) is a ministerial department of His Majesty's Government 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 uphold people's civil liberties.[2] The Secretary of State is the minister responsible to Parliament for the judiciary, the court system and 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.

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 and 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]

Discover more about Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom) related topics

Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom

Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom

The Government of the United Kingdom is divided up into departments. These, according to the government, are responsible for putting government policy into practice. There are currently 24 ministerial departments, 20 non-ministerial departments and 422 agencies and other public bodies, for a total of 465 departments.

Government of the United Kingdom

Government of the United Kingdom

The Government of the United Kingdom, officially His Majesty's Government, is the central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The government is led by the prime minister who selects all the other ministers. The country has had a Conservative-led government since 2010, with successive prime ministers being the then leader of the Conservative Party. The prime minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision-making committee, known as the Cabinet.

England and Wales

England and Wales

England and Wales is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is English law.

Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

The deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom is a minister of the Crown and a member of the British Cabinet. The office is not always in use, and prime ministers may use other offices, such as First Secretary of State, to indicate the seniority.

Jersey

Jersey

Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an island country and self-governing British Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the largest of the Channel Islands and is 14 miles (23 km) from the Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy. The Bailiwick consists of the main island of Jersey and some surrounding uninhabited islands and rocks including Les Dirouilles, Les Écréhous, Les Minquiers, and Les Pierres de Lecq.

Guernsey

Guernsey

Guernsey is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency.

Isle of Man

Isle of Man

The Isle of Man, also known as Mann, is a self-governing Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Governor. The government of the United Kingdom is responsible for the isle's military defence and represents it abroad.

Falkland Islands

Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about 300 mi (480 km) east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about 752 mi (1,210 km) from Cape Dubouzet at the northern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula, at a latitude of about 52°S. The archipelago, with an area of 4,700 sq mi (12,000 km2), comprises East Falkland, West Falkland, and 776 smaller islands. As a British overseas territory, the Falklands have internal self-governance, but the United Kingdom takes responsibility for their defence and foreign affairs. The capital and largest settlement is Stanley on East Falkland.

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories

The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former British Empire and do not form part of the United Kingdom itself. The permanently inhabited territories are internally self-governing, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defence and foreign relations. Three of the territories are inhabited, chiefly or only, by a transitory population of military or scientific personnel. All but one of the rest are listed by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization as non-self-governing territories. All fourteen have the British monarch as head of state. These UK government responsibilities are assigned to various departments of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and are subject to change.

Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory and city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. It has an area of 6.7 km2 (2.6 sq mi) and is bordered to the north by Spain. The landscape is dominated by the Rock of Gibraltar, at the foot of which is a densely populated town area, home to over 32,000 people, primarily Gibraltarians.

Home Secretary

Home Secretary

The secretary of state for the Home Department is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Home Office As a Great Office of State, the home secretary is one of the most senior and influential ministers in the government. The incumbent is a statutory member of the British Cabinet and National Security Council.

Department for Constitutional Affairs

Department for Constitutional Affairs

The Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA) was a United Kingdom government department. Its creation was announced on 12 June 2003; it took over the functions of the Lord Chancellor's Department. On 28 March 2007 it was announced that the Department for Constitutional Affairs would take control of probation, prisons and prevention of re-offending from the Home Office and be renamed the Ministry of Justice. This took place on 9 May 2007.

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. The role is currently held by the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak. 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 our 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.

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]

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Cameron–Clegg coalition

Cameron–Clegg coalition

The Cameron–Clegg coalition was formed by David Cameron and Nick Clegg when Cameron was invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a government, following the resignation of Prime Minister Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010, after the general election on 6 May. It was the UK's first coalition government since the Churchill caretaker ministry in 1945. The coalition was led by Cameron as Prime Minister with Clegg as Deputy Prime Minister and composed of members of both Cameron's centre-right Conservative Party and Clegg's centrist Liberal Democrats.

Northern Ireland Executive

Northern Ireland Executive

The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly. It is answerable to the assembly and was initially established according to the terms of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, which followed the Good Friday Agreement. The executive is referred to in the legislation as the Executive Committee of the assembly and is an example of consociationalist ("power-sharing") government.

Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

The deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom is a minister of the Crown and a member of the British Cabinet. The office is not always in use, and prime ministers may use other offices, such as First Secretary of State, to indicate the seniority.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office

The Cabinet Office is a department of the UK Government responsible for supporting the prime minister and Cabinet. It is composed of various units that support Cabinet committees and which co-ordinate the delivery of government objectives via other departments. As of December 2021, it had over 10,200 staff, mostly civil servants, some of whom work in Whitehall. Staff working in the Prime Minister's Office are part of the Cabinet Office.

House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England.

Minister for the Union

Minister for the Union

Minister for the Union is a position created by the former prime minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson during his first ministry, to be held concurrently with the duties of prime minister. Johnson proposed the position during the 2019 Conservative Party leadership campaign. He was the first prime minister to adopt the title, and the post was retained by Johnson in his second ministry. The title was retained under Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.

Leader of the House of Lords

Leader of the House of Lords

The leader of the House of Lords is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Lords. The post is also the leader of the majority party in the House of Lords who acts as the government party chairperson in the house. The role is always held in combination with a formal Cabinet position, usually one of the sinecure offices of Lord President of the Council, Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal or Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Unless the Leader is also a departmental minister, being Leader constitutes the bulk of their government responsibilities, but it has never been an independent salaried office. The Office of the Leader of the House of Lords is a ministerial department.

Leader of the House of Commons

Leader of the House of Commons

The leader of the House of Commons is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom whose main role is organising government business in the House of Commons. The leader is generally a member or attendee of the cabinet of the United Kingdom.

European Convention on Human Rights

European Convention on Human Rights

The European Convention on Human Rights is an international convention to protect human rights and political freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953. All Council of Europe member states are party to the Convention and new members are expected to ratify the convention at the earliest opportunity.

European Court of Human Rights

European Court of Human Rights

The European Court of Human Rights, also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a contracting state has breached one or more of the human rights enumerated in the convention or its optional protocols to which a member state is a party. The European Convention on Human Rights is also referred to by the initials "ECHR". The court is based in Strasbourg, France.

Lord Chancellor

Lord Chancellor

The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The lord chancellor is appointed by the sovereign on the advice of the prime minister. Prior to their Union into the Kingdom of Great Britain, there were separate lord chancellors for the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland; there were lord chancellors of Ireland until 1922.

Lord Chancellor of Ireland

Lord Chancellor of Ireland

The Lord High Chancellor of Ireland was the highest judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 to 1801, it was also the highest political office of the Irish Parliament: the Chancellor was Speaker of the Irish House of Lords. The Lord Chancellor was also Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of Ireland. In all three respects, the office mirrored the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain.

Ministers

The Ministers in the Ministry of Justice are as follows:[17]

Minister Office Portfolio
The Rt Hon Dominic Raab MP Secretary of State
Lord Chancellor
Overall departmental responsibility; Oversight of all portfolios and Ministry of Justice strategy; Oversight of future relationship with the EU and international business; Resourcing of the department; Functions of the Lord Chancellor; Judicial policy including pay, pensions and diversity; Corporate services.[18] communicating with the Attorney General's Office[19]
The Rt Hon Edward Argar MP Minister of State for Victims and Courts Victims and Witnesses; Rape and Serious Sexual Offences (RASSO); Violence against Women and Girls (VAWG); Sentencing; Foreign National Offenders; Miscarriages of Justice; Statutory Instruments (SIs); Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA); Transparency[20]
The Rt Hon Damian Hinds MP Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation Prison operations, policy, reform and industrial relations; Probation policy and operations; Youth justice; Parole; Offender health; Offender Cohorts; Extremism; Home Detention Curfew (HDC); Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) schemes; Drugs; Electronic monitoring; Reducing reoffending[21]
Mike Freer MP Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Legal Services International; Promotion of legal services; Crown Dependencies; Lead on cross-cutting CJS issues; Criminal law and Criminal court recovery (including legal aid); HMCTS administration including fees; Court and Tribunal reform programme delivery; Court and Tribunal transparency; Commons shadow for Lord Bellamy; Office of the Public Guardian (OPG); Mental capacity; Coroners and death management; Racial disparity; Cross cutting corporate decisions[22]
The Rt Hon. The Lord Bellamy KC Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice MoJ business in the House of Lords (excluding Criminal Legal Aid); Constitution; Constitution; Modern Justice System: Legal Support; Dispute Resolution and Lawtech and emerging technologies; Human Rights; Judicial Review; Judicial Policy; Civil Justice; International; Tribunals Policy; Court Recovery - Civil, Family, Tribunal; Legal Aid - Civil, Family, Tribunal; Legal Services; Devolution and the Union; Family Justice and Marriage and Divorce; EU Retained Law policy[23]

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

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Dominic Raab

Dominic Raab

Dominic Rennie Raab is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Secretary of State for Justice, and Lord Chancellor since October 2022, having previously served from 2021 to September 2022. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Esher and Walton since 2010. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as Brexit Secretary in 2018 and as both First Secretary of State and Foreign Secretary from 2019 to 2021.

Lord Chancellor

Lord Chancellor

The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The lord chancellor is appointed by the sovereign on the advice of the prime minister. Prior to their Union into the Kingdom of Great Britain, there were separate lord chancellors for the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland; there were lord chancellors of Ireland until 1922.

Attorney General's Office (United Kingdom)

Attorney General's Office (United Kingdom)

The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is a department of His Majesty's Government that supports the Attorney General and their deputy, the Solicitor General. It is sometimes referred to as the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers.

Edward Argar

Edward Argar

Edward John Comport Argar is a British politician serving as Minister of State for Victims and Sentencing since October 2022. He briefly served as Chief Secretary to the Treasury in October 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he previously served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice from 2018 to 2019, Minister of State for Health from 2019 to 2022, and as Paymaster General from September to October 2022. Argar has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Charnwood since the 2015 general election.

Minister of State

Minister of State

Damian Hinds

Damian Hinds

Damian Patrick George Hinds is a British politician serving as Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation since October 2022. He served as Secretary of State for Education from 2018 to 2019 and Minister of State for Security and Borders from 2021 to 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for East Hampshire since 2010.

Minister of State for Prisons and Probation

Minister of State for Prisons and Probation

The Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation is a mid-level ministerial office in the Ministry of Justice. It has, at times, been seen as the deputy to the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor.

Mike Freer

Mike Freer

Michael Whitney Freer is a gay British Conservative Party politician and former banker serving as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Courts and Legal Services since September 2022. He was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the constituency of Finchley and Golders Green at the 2010 general election. Freer is a former leader of Barnet Council and a former councillor for the Church End and St Paul's wards in Finchley.

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the UK government, immediately junior to a Minister of State, which is itself junior to a Secretary of State.

Christopher Bellamy, Baron Bellamy

Christopher Bellamy, Baron Bellamy

Christopher William Bellamy, Baron Bellamy, is a British barrister and former judge.

Antonia Romeo

Antonia Romeo

Antonia Rebecca Caroline Romeo is a British civil servant. She is currently serving as the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Justice and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery. She was the permanent secretary at the Department for International Trade and before that, the British consul-general in New York for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and concurrently director-general for economic and commercial affairs in the USA.

Clerk of the Crown in Chancery

Clerk of the Crown in Chancery

The Clerk of the Crown in Chancery in Great Britain is a senior civil servant who is the head of the Crown Office.

Source: "Ministry of Justice (United Kingdom)", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 13th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Justice_(United_Kingdom).

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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.
  18. ^ "Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
  19. ^ "The Attorney General of England and the Attorney General of the United States". Duke University School of Law. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  20. ^ "Minister of State - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  21. ^ "Minister of State - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  22. ^ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  23. ^ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
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