Home Office Ministers and Responsibilities

Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC

Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC is Minister of State for the Criminal Justice System and Law Reform.

She has overall responsibility for reform and modernisation of the Criminal Justice System. Public service agreement targets 3 and 4 - narrowing the 'justice gap' and building confidence in the CJS. CJS IT and e-Government. Race in the criminal justice system; support for victims and witnesses; Criminal Injuries Compensation; domestic violence. Oversight of all criminal justice issues - particular responsibility for sentencing policy, disclosure, and rules of evidence. Criminal Justice Act and Bribery and Corruption. Restorative justice. Criminal records bureau. Baroness Scotland is also responsible for all Home Office business in the House of Lords.

The Rt Hon. the Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC became Home Office Minister of State for the Criminal Justice System and Law Reform in June 2003 and is spokesperson for DTI on Women and Equality Issues in the House of Lords.

Previously she was Parliamentary Secretary at the Lord Chancellor's Department from 2001 to 2003; and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 1999 to 2001.

She was an Alternate UK Government Representative of the European Convention from 2002 to 2003.

After graduating with LLB Hons (London), Patricia Scotland was called to the Bar, Middle Temple, in 1977, received Silk in 1991 and became a Bencher in 1997.

She is a member of the Bar of Antigua and the Commonwealth of Dominica; was appointed an Assistant Recorder in 1994, a Recorder in 2000 and approved to sit as a Deputy High Court Judge of the Family Division; she is a Door Tenant at Bridewell Chambers.

She is an Honorary Fellow of The Society for Advanced Legal Studies; Wolfson College, Cambridge and of Cardiff University.

She has an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Westminster and the University of Buckingham.

She is a Dame of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George.

She is a patron of The Margaret Beaufort Institute, GAP, The Frank Longford Charitable Trust and Sponsor of the George Viner Memorial Fund Trust.

She is a member of the Thomas More Society and the Lawyers' Christian Fellowship.

She is a member of The All Parliamentary Group on Breast Cancer, The Parliamentary Labour Party Women's Group, the House of Lords All Party Parliamentary London Group, The All Party Parliamentary Group of CAFOD, The All Party Parliamentary Group for Children and the Lords' Prayer Group.

She is a former member of the Bar Public Relations Committee, Race Relations Committee, Professional Conduct Committee, Judicial Studies Board Ethnic Minority Advisory Committee, House of Commons Working Party on Child Abduction, Legal Advisory Panel on the National Consumer Council, the Independent Committee for the Supervision of Standards of Telephone Information Services and the National Advisory Committee on Mentally Disordered Offenders.

In addition, she was formerly one of Her Majesty's Commissioners for Racial Equality, a former Honorary President of the Trinity Hall Law Society, a former Chairman of the ILEA Disciplinary Tribunal, a member of the BBC World Service Consultative Group, Chairman of HMG Caribbean Advisory Group, the Dominican Representative of the Council of The British Commonwealth Ex-Service league and served as a member of the Millennium Commission from 1994-99.

She has specialised in family and public law and has chaired and represented parties in a number of Inquiries relating to Child Abuse, Mental Health and Housing. She was voted Black Woman of the Year (Law) 1992.

She was founder member and former Head of Chambers of 1 Gray's Inn Square.

Baroness Scotland was created a peer as Baroness Scotland of Asthal, of Asthal in the County of Oxfordshire, in 1997 and was raised to the Privy Council in July 2001.

She married in 1985 and has two sons.

The Lord Chancellor has also allocated the following responsibilities to Baroness Scotland:

Baroness Scotland is also deputy to Peter Hain (Foreign Office Minister) on the Convention of Europe as well as Cabinet Office Spokesperson on Gender and Equality Issues.