§ Lord Spensasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether any conclusions have been reached from the responses to the Lord Chancellor's 1992 Consultation Paper on Long Criminal Trials and, if not, what are the reasons for this delay.
§ The Lord Chancellor (Lord Mackay of Clashfern)The consultation paper on Long Criminal Trials was published by the Lord Chancellor, the Home Secretary and the Attorney General, and the responses to it have been considered by an Inter-Departmental Working Group. As expected, the report of the Royal Commission on Criminal Justice included many recommendations on those areas covered by the consultation paper and the subsequent responses. As I announced on 1 July 1993, the work and views of the working group are being taken into account in the further consideration which the Government are giving to these areas in the light of the Royal Commission's report.