A Bolton MP and former criminal barrister has been appointed to help oversee courts, prisons and the justice system. This comes after Yasmin Qureshi MP, of Bolton South East, was appointed as a member of the Justice Select Committee in parliament. Her new role will involve looking at the polies and spending of the Ministry of Justice and advising on sentencing guidelines.
Ms Qureshi said: “I am delighted to be appointed to the Justice Select Committee. “I will use my experiences as a criminal barrister and as a former shadow justice minister to scrutinise the government’s policies across all areas of justice. Yasmin Qureshi has frequently warned about delays at Bolton Crown Court (Image: Newsquest) “We have seen recently the importance of good justice policy and spending and what happens when the government fails to do either.
“I will be questioning the lack of investment in prison capacity and on rehabilitation by this government and pushing for the government to address the court backlogs.” The Justice Select Committee is made up of 11 members of parliament, including six Conservatives MPs, four Labour MPs and an SNP MP. Though it cannot consider individual cases, the committee can scrutinise a wide range of areas dealt with by the Ministry of Justice and other associated bodies.
These include the state of the courts, legal aid, prisons, probation and the rule of law. As well as her time as an MP, Ms Qureshi also brings her background as a former in-house barris.