Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Ann Clwyd (Labour). It was answered by Lord Garnier (Conservative) on Tuesday, 7 February 2012 on behalf of the Attorney General.

Crown Prosecution Service (Evidence)

Question: To ask the Attorney General, what recent assessment he has made of the management and disclosure of evidence by the Crown Prosecution Service.

Answer: The effective management and disclosure of evidence relies on the proper discharge of duties and obligations by both the police and the prosecutor. Although there have been failures in a small number of cases, in the vast majority of cases the disclosure duties are carried out well. As the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith) will know, there is currently an inquiry into the Lynette White case in south Wales, more properly called the Crown v. Mouncher and others. The Independent Police Complaints Commission is carrying out a review of police conduct in that case, and the Director of Public Prosecutions has separately and additionally asked the inspectorate of the Crown Prosecution Service to carry out a review of the actions and decision making of the CPS in relation to disclosure in that case.

Secondary information