Policy Hub
The House of Commons Justice Committee’s report on the work of the Crown Prosecution Service, published on 6 August 2009, calls for the Attorney General and the Director of Public Prosecutions to show clear leadership in defining the role of the prosecutor in the criminal justice system.
The report raises concerns about a series of issues, including consistency, the piecemeal way in which the organisation’s functions are developing, the increasing use of conditional cautions, the lack of an effective complaints system, and the proportion of cases taken by in-house advocates.
Acknowledging that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has come a long way since the early days when it was much criticised, the report notes that the organisation has now taken on wider responsibilities without there being a clear understanding of its role.
The CPS also has a difficult balance to strike between being a local community service with local discretion and a service which has central direction to maintain standards and ensure consistency. The report concludes that as the gatekeeper of the criminal justice system it must be robustly independent.
The Crown Prosecution Service: gatekeeper of the criminal justice system (PDF)