Civometry

Ministry of Justice · 13 December 2019 – 5 July 2024

Prosecutions during the Conservative 2019–2024 government

Year ending March 2019 → Year ending March 2024 · 5 periods

↓ 5.5%−74,649 defendants

Prosecutions fell by 5.5% over the period, from 1,345,708 defendants (Year ending March 2019, the level when the government took office) to 1,271,059 (Year ending March 2024, the last complete period before it left office).

  1. Inherited level Year ending March 2019: 1,345,708
  2. Level when it left Year ending March 2024: 1,271,059
  3. method: latest complete period before start / before end

Changes during this period do not by themselves show what the government caused. Statistics reflect many influences, including earlier decisions, the economy and how the data is collected.

Prosecutions: Year ending March 2016 to Year ending March 2026ConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeLabourLabour0500k1m201620182020202220242026Before: Figures as originally processed. After: Figures reprocessed ahead of the 2023 Q2 edition.methodology changeYear ending March 2016: 1,493,801 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2017: 1,442,793 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2018: 1,353,888 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2019: 1,345,708 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2020: 1,318,738 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2021: 877,831 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2022: 1,115,215 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2023: 1,188,455 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2024: 1,271,059 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2025: 1,344,552 defendants · published 30 July 2026Year ending March 2026: 1,360,615 defendants · published 30 July 2026
Published valueProvisional or revisedLatestDashed line: change in coverage or methodShaded bands: governments (see labels)Hover or use arrow keys to read a value

Definition and caveats

The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts in England and Wales in the twelve months ending March, on a principal-offence basis.

Doesn’t measure: Out-of-court disposals, or the outcome of the proceedings; the Ministry of Justice advises against dividing convictions by prosecutions to make a conviction rate.