§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what consultation the Lord Chancellor's Department has conducted regarding the appointment of individuals to courts administration councils. [102654]
§ Yvette CooperThe Government conducted a consultation exercise following publication of Sir Robin Auld's Review of the Criminal Courts. This informed the White Paper "Justice for All" published in July 2002 in which the Government said it wanted the unified courts administration to be developed by those closest to the business. As a result, the Central Council of Magistrates' Courts' Committees and the Association of Justices' Chief Executives both sit on the steering group overseeing the development of the new organisation.
Local consultation is a key part of the overall consultation process. A series of one-day discussion groups across the country is being run by my Department. Court users, the local magistracy, the judiciary and court staff are represented on these groups. They are considering, amongst other things, include how the size and membership of court administration councils might vary across the country according to local circumstances, and how these members should be appointed. The results from these groups will be fed into the development of the court administration councils and will also be reported to Parliament during the parliamentary passage of the Courts Bill.