§ Lord James Douglas-Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will make a statement on the backlog of cases before the sheriff courts in Scotland; and what steps he is taking to remedy the situation.
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§ Mr. AncramThe total number of summary criminal trials outstanding in the sheriff courts at 31 March for each of the last 3 years was as follows:
Number 31 March 1982 12,173 31 March 1983 11,583 31 March 1984 12,035 These figures demonstrate that for summary criminal business the sheriff courts have been containing any backlog.
Primary responsibility for the speedy and efficient disposal of business in the sheriff courts rests with the sheriffs principal and the Secretary of State continues to assist them to discharge this duty by the provision of temporary shrieval assistance when appropriate within available resources.