header-logo header-logo

16 December 2022 / Roger Smith
Issue: 8007 / Categories: Opinion , Profession , Legal aid focus
printer mail-detail

Justice in Numbers: a work in progress

104765
The Ministry of Justice’s ‘one-stop shop’ for data is a promising start, but nowhere near a finished result, says Roger Smith

In October, previous Lord Chancellor Brandon Lewis and continuing permanent secretary Antonia Romeo proudly turned to Twitter. They were announcing ‘Justice in Numbers’, an ‘innovative new tool’ (Romeo) which provides a ‘one-stop shop for key statistics on prisons, probation and our courts’ (Lewis). Justice in Numbers comprises a digital package of information available on the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) website and a couple of PDFs for those who prefer printable information.

As perhaps is ever the case, clarity of information just opens up further questions. The MoJ does not expressly seek comment or commit to an interactive process of future development. However, it will surely be assisted by the thoughts of those outside government for whom this information is presumably provided.

So. Go to the website; form your own judgement of its usefulness; and inform a grateful department of your thoughts. Here are mine.

Honest data

First,

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys senior leadership appointments

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths strengthens London Construction and Engineering practice with two strategic senior hires

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins announces strategic hire to deepen skills base in the social business sector

NEWS
Existing defamation law can respond to AI ‘hallucinations’, but allocating responsibility will prove harder where outputs reach users without human intervention
The High Court has upheld a rare successful serious-irregularity challenge after an arbitrator relied on an implied term neither party had advanced
Thirty years after The Future of Law shook a profession still using fax machines, its central forecast looks increasingly less like prophecy and more like description
More than 100 teams from the legal and financial services sectors competed in five sports at the 51st Law Society RFC Festival of Sport earlier this month
Part-time status need only be an effective cause of less favourable treatment, rather than the sole cause, the Supreme Court has held in Augustine v Data Cars
back-to-top-scroll