§ 69. Mr. Prenticeasked the Minister of Labour what is the average length of time between the submission of a case to the Industrial Court and the notification of the Court's decision; what was the average length of time a year ago; and what steps he is taking to speed up this procedure.
§ Mr. HareThe average number of days between my reference of a case to the Industrial Court and the issue of the award by the court has been 82 during the past 12 months. The corresponding average for the preceding 12months was 68 days. The hon. Member will appreciate that the interval between the reference and the publication of the award includes the period before the date of the hearing. The date of hearing is of course arranged to suit the convenience of the parties. In the past 12 months there have been a number of cases where the wishes of the parties have caused considerable delay.
I am, however, making arrangements to provide the court with additional secretarial assistance.