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Search for press releasesHome Secretary Outlines Changes to System for Compensating Miscarriages of Justice
19 April 2006
A package of measures to reform the system under which the Government pays compensation for miscarriages of justice was announced today by Home Secretary Charles Clarke.
The changes, some with immediate effect and others requiring primary legislation, aim to ensure that compensation payments paid by the state are proportionate to the level of injustice experienced by applicants, bringing them more into line with amounts paid to victims of crime.
Measures announced today include:
- Ending the discretionary compensation scheme
The state will continue to provide compensation to those entitled to it under the statutory scheme. However, the Government will no longer pay compensation over and above that which is required by international obligations and as such has ended the discretionary scheme. Those not entitled to compensation under the statutory scheme will still be free to seek redress through the civil courts. - Restricting payments to those eligible under the statutory compensation scheme
The Government will bring the compensation paid in miscarriages of justice closer to that paid to victims of crime by restricting overall payouts and the amount paid in respect of lost earnings. The Government will therefore bring legislation forward to cap payments made under the statutory scheme to a maximum of £500,000. This change is fully in line with international obligations.
The Government is also taking action to further limit compensation payments to applicants who have other serious criminal convictions and/or whose conduct contributed to the situation in which they found themselves.
"The changes I have announced today will create a fairer, simpler and speedier system for compensating miscarriages of justice. I am scrapping the discretionary scheme which has become increasingly anomalous and I do not believe that this can continue to be justified.
"We will continue to meet our statutory obligations to anyone who suffers a miscarriage of justice but I will bring forward legislation to cap payments to £500,000 bringing it into line with compensation paid to victims of crime.
"The Government is committed to putting victims' interests at the heart of the criminal justice system. These changes will save more than £5 million a year which we will plough back into improving criminal justice and support for victims of crime."
The Home Secretary also announced today a ministerial review, with the Lord Chancellor and Attorney General, to examine the test used by the Court of Appeal to quash convictions.
Such a review was previously recommended by Lord Justice Auld. It will examine to what extent an error in the trial process necessarily means a miscarriage of justice. A full consultation will follow the review if the Government has proposals for change.
Notes to Editors
- The Home Secretary announced full details of the changes to Parliament today via a Written Ministerial Statement.
- The Home Secretary has previously paid compensation under two schemes: a statutory scheme under section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 and a discretionary scheme which operates on the basis of the statement made by the then Home Secretary to the House of Commons on 29 November 1985.
- The statutory scheme meets international obligations under the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The scheme places a duty on the Home Secretary to pay compensation where there has been a miscarriage of justice in the form of conviction quashed at an out of time appeal because of a new or newly discovered fact not previously known to the person convicted.
- Although the Home Secretary decides whether an individual should receive compensation in respect of a wrongful conviction or charge, the level of any award is a matter for the Assessor, currently Lord Brennan of Bibury QC. The Assessor is appointed by the Home Secretary following an open competition and is someone who is experienced in the assessment of damages.
- The discretionary scheme predated the statutory arrangements. It differed from them mainly in that it also offered the possibility of compensation for people who were acquitted following an in time appeal, or who were not convicted at trial, if they have spent a period in custody following a wrongful conviction or charge, and if the Home Secretary was satisfied that it had resulted from a serious default on the part of a member of the police force or other public body.
- In 2005/06 around £8m was paid in compensation - £6m under the statutory scheme and £2m under the discretionary scheme. Average final awards have increased from around £170,000 in 2003/04 to more than £250,000 in 2005/06. The highest ever award totalled £2.1m. Average awards to victims of crime are £5,000 and are currently capped at £500,000.
