§ 25. Mr. David Ruffley (Bury St. Edmunds)What recent representations he has received regarding the closing of Crown courts in rural areas. [121901]
§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (Jane Kennedy)There is no record of any such representations having been received within the past few years.
§ Mr. RuffleyI am grateful for that reply. Is the Minister aware that as a result of the development of new Crown court facilities in Ipswich, Crown court users in Bury St. Edmunds have been informed that our Crown court may close and that there may be a consultation period? Does she understand that if justice in rural areas is to be delivered and dispensed locally, the Government must ensure that such Crown courts are not closed, and, more to the point, that proposals to close them are not made by her Department?
§ Jane KennedyI understand local concern, but the Court Service, in conjunction with the judiciary and the criminal justice organisations, has been studying ways to make the criminal trial process more efficient and effective. The Court Service has undertaken a major programme of work—the Crown court programme—and its overarching and straightforward objectives are: to reduce the economic cost of crime by reducing the unit costs of a Crown court case to the criminal justice system; to deal with cases throughout the system with appropriate speed by reducing the time taken from committal to sentence or other disposal; and, finally and most important, to meet the needs of victims, witnesses and jurors by improving their satisfaction levels.