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Squatting

Question for Ministry of Justice

UIN 3649, tabled on 23 June 2015

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of changes in the prevalence of squatting in commercial premises following the introduction of the criminal provisions contained in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Answered on

1 July 2015

This answer is a correction from the original answer.

We continue to monitor the situation closely.

Original answer

Data on life sentence prisoners who commit offences of homicide and other serious offences are taken from the NOMS Public Protection Unit Database.

From 1 May 2013 – 31 April 2015, 12 offenders have been convicted of further offences, having been released on a life licence. The table below provides a breakdown of the offences. These offences are limited to those which fall in scope under the Probation Serious Further Offence (SFO) Review Procedures, and relate to those offences contained in Schedule 15a of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, which attract a sentence of 14 years or more.

01/05/2013- 31/04/2014

Murder

2

Other serious offences

2

01/05/2014- 31/04/2015

Murder

1

Other serious offences

7

Public protection is our priority, and offenders serving a life sentence are subject to strict controls for as long as their risk requires them. If they fail to comply with these conditions or their behaviour indicates that it is no longer safe for them or for the public if they remain in the community, they can be immediately returned to prison. All 12 of these offenders were returned to prison when charged with serious further offences.