§ Mr. Edward DaveyTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor"s Department if he will list the monthly court sitting hours for(a) 1998, (b) 1999, (c) 2000 and (d) 2001 for the magistrates courts in (i) Kingston-upon-Thames, (ii) Merton, (iii) Richmondupon-Thames, (iv) Sutton and (v) Croydon. [43799]
§ Mr. WillsCourt sitting hours are collected annually for the Magistrates Courts Committees (MCC) areas rather than individual courts. The figures for the five MCC areas in the question are contained in the table. Figures for 2001–02 are not yet available for the single entity of the Greater London Magistrates Courts Authority (GLMCA) which was formed in April 2001 and incorporates the previous 22 Greater London MCCs including the five courts in question.
Court sitting hours 19981 April 1999 to March 20001 April 2000 to March 2001 Kingston upon Thames 2,915 2,960 2,718 Merton 3,426 3,670 4,148 Richmond upon Thames 2,920 2,606 3,134 Sutton 2,622 2,628 2,780 Croydon 7,273 6,658 7,098 1 At the end of 1998, the system was amended to collection based upon financial rather than calendar years.