HC Deb 11 July 1994 vol 246 c394W
1984 Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many clerks in magistrates courts there were in Wales in(a) 1974, (b)(c) at the latest available date; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. John M. Taylor

No reliable records of this information exist prior to 1990. In the magistrates courts in Wales, as at the end of December 1993 there were 21 justices' clerks and 127 court clerks, including trainees.

Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what was the cost of administering county courts and Crown courts in Wales in each year since 1990; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. John M. Taylor

The table sets out the approximate cost of administering county and Crown courts since 1990. The division between Crown and county courts cannot be exact due to shared costs. The figures are in respect of the Wales and Chester circuit which includes areas of Cheshire.

£million
Year Crown County Total
1990–91 6.225 10.133 16.358
1991–92 8.525 12.158 20.683
1992–93 10.321 14.219 24.540
1993–94 10.093 15.160 25.253

Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many magistrates courts there were in Wales in(a) 1964, (b) 1974, (c) 1984 and (d) at the latest available date; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. John M. Taylor

This information is not collected centrally. The provision of magistrates courthouse accommodation in Wales is a local matter for the eight individual magistrates' courts committees in consultation with their respective county councils, the paying authorities.

Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what measures are currently under consideration to improve the administration of Crown and county courts in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. John M. Taylor

A number of national initiatives will help to improve the administration of county courts in Wales. These initiatives are concerned with streamlining procedures, and with the introduction of computer support for court functions. From 1995 it is planned that the LOCCS—local office county courts system—computer system will provide support across the range of county court functions which must be done locally. Other, centralised systems, such as the county court bulk centre, will improve the service offered in all county courts by removing routine and repetitive work which need not be handled locally and which can be handled more efficiently and effectively in a central, computer-supported location. A business management system for measuring work in the county court was implemented in September 1993. A similar system will be introduced into the Crown court in 1997. The Wales and Chester circuit administrator has published a policy document with a view to extending the use of the Welsh language in court proceedings in the Principality.