Written questions by Franklin.

What safeguards exist for beneficiaries when executors are (a) incapable of fulfilling their duties and (b) abusing their position.

A wide range of safeguards are available in legislation to hold executors accountable for the performance of their duties in administering the estate of a deceased person. Protections for beneficiaries if executors are incapable of fulfilling their duties or abuse their positions include:Renunciation – an executor is able to renounce their office if they find the role too difficult or their health is too poor, work commitments too great or it is impractical (for example they live abroad).Capacity – a person who lacks mental capacity to act as an executor cannot do so while such incapacity lasts.Passing over – Section 116 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 empowers courts to pass over an executor where it is considered necessary or expedient and appoint an administrator.Citation to accept or renounce a grant – the courts can summon an executor where they have failed to act to apply for probate or renounce their office and if they do not appear their rights as an executor cease.Citation to take probate – an application to court where an executor has taken some steps without formalising their role.Inventory and Accounts – an application can be made by a beneficiary to the court to require an executor to provide an inventory and account of their administration of an estate.Removal – applications can be made under section 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985 to remove and replace an executor after probate where there are grounds to do so.Fraud – allegations of executors committing criminal offences such as fraud can be investigated by the police.Given the wide range of safeguards, and the checks and balances the legislation provides (given the challenges faced by and onerous duty imposed on executors) the Government has no plans to reform the current mechanisms for holding executors and other personal representatives to account.Attorneys appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) are chosen by the donor themselves, reflecting their trust and personal decision about who should act on their behalf. The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) ensures the LPA is valid before registering it and can investigate concerns raised with them about an attorney’s conduct. However, the OPG does not have statutory powers to proactively monitor attorneys where no concerns have been reported.There are also important safeguards built into the LPA process, such as the certificate provider who plays a key role in confirming that the donor understands the arrangement and is not under undue pressure. There is also a statutory waiting period prior to registration, to allow for objections against registration to be raised. These measures, alongside the donor’s choice of attorney, provide a level of security within the current framework.Looking forward, the OPG and the Ministry of Justice are progressing a modernisation project that aims to increase safeguards and improve access to LPAs, which will be achieved by introducing a digital channel to make and register an LPA, while improving the existing paper channel. This will make LPAs easier to understand, and break down barriers to starting an LPA.

Whether he plans to improve oversight mechanisms for (a) executors and (b) attorneys under Lasting Powers of Attorney.

A wide range of safeguards are available in legislation to hold executors accountable for the performance of their duties in administering the estate of a deceased person. Protections for beneficiaries if executors are incapable of fulfilling their duties or abuse their positions include:Renunciation – an executor is able to renounce their office if they find the role too difficult or their health is too poor, work commitments too great or it is impractical (for example they live abroad).Capacity – a person who lacks mental capacity to act as an executor cannot do so while such incapacity lasts.Passing over – Section 116 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 empowers courts to pass over an executor where it is considered necessary or expedient and appoint an administrator.Citation to accept or renounce a grant – the courts can summon an executor where they have failed to act to apply for probate or renounce their office and if they do not appear their rights as an executor cease.Citation to take probate – an application to court where an executor has taken some steps without formalising their role.Inventory and Accounts – an application can be made by a beneficiary to the court to require an executor to provide an inventory and account of their administration of an estate.Removal – applications can be made under section 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985 to remove and replace an executor after probate where there are grounds to do so.Fraud – allegations of executors committing criminal offences such as fraud can be investigated by the police.Given the wide range of safeguards, and the checks and balances the legislation provides (given the challenges faced by and onerous duty imposed on executors) the Government has no plans to reform the current mechanisms for holding executors and other personal representatives to account.Attorneys appointed under a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) are chosen by the donor themselves, reflecting their trust and personal decision about who should act on their behalf. The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) ensures the LPA is valid before registering it and can investigate concerns raised with them about an attorney’s conduct. However, the OPG does not have statutory powers to proactively monitor attorneys where no concerns have been reported.There are also important safeguards built into the LPA process, such as the certificate provider who plays a key role in confirming that the donor understands the arrangement and is not under undue pressure. There is also a statutory waiting period prior to registration, to allow for objections against registration to be raised. These measures, alongside the donor’s choice of attorney, provide a level of security within the current framework.Looking forward, the OPG and the Ministry of Justice are progressing a modernisation project that aims to increase safeguards and improve access to LPAs, which will be achieved by introducing a digital channel to make and register an LPA, while improving the existing paper channel. This will make LPAs easier to understand, and break down barriers to starting an LPA.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that Personal Independence Payment appeals for claimants awarded under the Special Rules for terminal illness are prioritised (a) when a PIP award has been removed despite no improvement in prognosis and the claimant has been waiting over a year for a tribunal hearing and (b) in general.

The listing of appeals is a matter for the Tribunal’s independent judiciary. Appeals are usually listed in chronological order based on the date of receipt.If an expedited hearing is sought, or where the Tribunal identifies a case which might benefit from an expedited hearing, a judge or tribunal caseworker will make a decision on the issue, taking all the circumstances of the case into account.

What assessment he has made of the safety of the use of PAVA spray in youth offender institutions.

In April 2025, the Government announced a limited rollout of PAVA incapacitant spray in the three young offender institutions (YOIs) for 15 to 18-year-olds (Werrington, Wetherby and Feltham A). It was determined that this was a necessary measure to protect children and members of staff at risk of serious and life changing injuries from incidents of violence.The potential use of PAVA spray in YOIs was the subject of lengthy consideration. This included research from available sources, and work with specialists across HM Prison and Probation Service and beyond. The advice of medical advisors and legal experts was taken into account in reaching the decision.PAVA is now available to specially selected and trained groups of staff at Werrington, Wetherby, and Feltham A, to facilitate an immediate local response to a serious incident. It is only to be used as a last resort, in response to an immediate threat of serious harm.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the (a) effectiveness and (b) value for money of outsourcing interpreter and translation services for court proceedings; and what steps she has taken to ensure (i) quality, (ii) consistency and (iii) the protection of fair trial rights when third-party contractors provide such services.

The Department has recently undertaken a re-procurement of its interpreter and translation service under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. These regulations mandate that public bodies aggregate expenditure on classes of goods and services and ensure that competition is applied through defined procurement procedures to ensure value for money. This principle underpinned the Ministry of Justice’s previous procurement of services and remains the case today.The Ministry of Justice has regular conversations with stakeholders and incorporated their views into the options explored within a delivery model assessment which resulted in the consideration of insourcing, and hybrid options of insource and outsource. Stakeholders were informed in 2022/23 that the Department planned to continue with an outsourced model after assessments indicated that it was the best model for our needs. This option allowed for greater cost efficiency and enabled a larger share of funding to be directed towards paying interpreters.It is vital that victims, witnesses and defendants understand what is happening in court to ensure justice is done. To support this, the Ministry of Justice operates a robust performance and quality regime for interpretation and translation services. These include monthly meetings with suppliers and stakeholders to monitor and discuss, in detail, the quality of the services being provided and performance against contractual performance indicators. The suppliers forecast demand, and work to ensure that there is a pool of qualified interpreters available to the Department to fulfil bookings and facilitate fair trials for those that require interpretation services. The contracts also provide for the Ministry of Justice to audit the suppliers to verify the accuracy of contractual payments, management information, and compliance with contractual obligations.In addition, the Department has awarded a contract for the provision of independent quality assurance of the services provided under these other contracts. This assurance is undertaken in a number of ways, including:Managing the Ministry’s register of interpretersConducting an annual audit of supplier processes for introducing new interpretersConducting a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignmentsAnnual surveys of business users of the service

Whether she has made a comparative assessment of the potential benefits of outsourcing services and providing services in-house.

The Government is committed to ensuring professional Facility Management services across its prison and probation estate. A 2023 assessment conducted in partnership with the Cabinet Office determined that an insourced solution was not the preferred option for future prison and probation maintenance services. Financial analysis determined that an outsourced option would be more cost effective and deliver the best value for money. A programme of work has been initiated that will put in place new contracts for the provision of maintenance services for prisons and probation. These are being competitively tendered. However, this approach is kept under constant review to ensure we get the best value for taxpayers’ money.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to implement the recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, published on 20 October 2022.

The Government is focused on delivering meaningful change for victims of these horrendous crimes.Before Easter, we will lay out a timetable for responding to the 20 recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. The new victims and survivors panel will support our cross-Government ministerial group to consider those recommendations, putting the voices of victims at the heart of our plans going forward.We will strengthen the law, introducing a mandatory reporting duty to make it an offence, with professional and criminal sanctions, to fail to report or to cover up child sexual abuse.Going further, my Department will legislate to make grooming an aggravating factor in the sentencing of child sexual offences, to ensure that this behaviour is reflected in the sentencing of perpetrators.