§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many recorded instances of violence have occurred in Crown courts in each of the last 10 years.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe number of recorded instances of assaults on Crown court staff in each of the past 10 years is as follows:
3W
Number 1983 0 1984 1 1985 0 1986 0 1987 0 1988 0 1989 3 1990 0 1991 0 1992 0 1993 11 1 To date. The only recently recorded instances of violence in a Crown court not involving court staff was one resulting in a fatality at Swindon combined court and a minor incident of assault at Chester Crown court. Both incidents happened in 1992.
§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what is the average cost of building a new Crown court room.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe average cost per courtroom of Crown court building schemes completed within the last 12 months is approximately £2.5 million. It is not possible to assess the cost of building a new courtroom in isolation from the supporting facilities provided in the remainder of the building.