Justice ministers’ responsibilities announced
20 May 2010
Roles and responsibilities for new ministers at the Ministry of Justice have today been confirmed.
The Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke QC, the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, welcomed Tom McNally, Nick Herbert, Crispin Blunt and Jonathan Djanogly to his ministerial team.
Kenneth Clarke said:
'I am pleased to welcome a team of able and distinguished ministers to the Ministry of Justice, who I believe will bring a great range of talent and experience to the department.
'We face a set of formidable challenges. We must ensure fairness and efficiency in our justice system, whilst reinforcing an independent judiciary. We must provide protection for the public from dangerous individuals and find ways to improve rehabilitation so to cut the worryingly high rates of recidivism. We must deliver these priorities against the backdrop of greater budget constraint than has been seen for many decades. I do not underestimate the scale of the task, but my team and I are ready to get to work, improving the justice system and delivering better value for the taxpayer.'
Kenneth Clarke will have oversight of all Ministry of Justice business. He will also have responsibility for:
- Criminal Justice and penal policy strategy
- Constitutional issues
- Judicial Policy
- National security justice issues
- EU and International
Police Minister Nick Herbert will be responsible for criminal justice strategy, reporting on this jointly to the Secretary of State and Home Secretary.
Tom McNally, Minister of State and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords, will have responsibility for:
- Departmental business in the Lords
- Support to Secretary of State on constitutional matters
- Civil liberties
- Freedom of information, data protection and data sharing
- Legislation and law reform
- Public law and public legal issues
- Support to the Secretary of State on EU and International business
- Crown Dependencies
- Land Registry
- National Archives
- Law Commission
Crispin Blunt, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, will have responsibility for:
- Prisons and Probation
- Youth Justice
- Criminal Law and Sentencing Policy
- Criminal Justice
Jonathan Djanogly, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, will have responsibility for:
- Legal Aid and Legal services
- HM Courts Service, Tribunals and administrative justice
- Office of the Public Guardian
- Offices of Court Funds, Official solicitor and public trustee
- Civil law and justice
- Family Justice
- Coroner reform and burial policy
- Criminal Cases Review Commission
- Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
- Parole Board
The Ministry of Justice will also now have sole responsibility for youth justice to ensure that one government department is clearly accountable for this important area of work. Previously, the policy was split between the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Education.
Notes to editors:
- For further information please contact the Ministry of Justice News Desk on 020 3334 3536.
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