§ Mr. Kilroy-Silkasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish the results of the questionnaire to courts concerning their use of lists of doctors and psychiatrists prepared to compile reports on defendants; and if he will make a statement;
(2) which courts have indicated to the Home Office that they often or always remand defendants in custody for medical reports.
§ Mr. Mayhew:In February 1981 a questionnaire was sent to all magistrates' courts in England and Wales about their access to, and use of, lists of doctors and psychiatrists prepared to do court work, and about other aspects of the preparation of medical and psychiatric reports for courts.
Of the 642 courts that responded, 417 reported that they kept a list of doctors or had access to a list held by other agencies. Ninety-six relied on local informal contacts for finding a doctor to make a report; 39 considered there to be no need or demand for a list. Thirty-one of the courts with lists but only 18 of those without lists indicated problems in obtaining medical reports.
These problems did not in the main appear to be directly associated with whether courts had available lists of doctors willing to do court work, but arose more from the delay in preparation of reports even where a doctor was available. This will be explored further before guidance is given to the courts. Consideration will also be given to suggestions from some courts that more outpatient facilitites at prisons would be useful.
Only four courts indicated that they often or always remanded defendants in custody for reports. Inquiries are being made of them to discover whether they still do and, if so, why. I will write to the hon. Member when these inquiries are complete.
The generally encouraging picture revealed by the replies to the questionnaire may well be due to some two-thirds of courts having access to lists of doctors. It remains our view that such lists serve a useful purpose, and we commend their use by the courts.