§ Mr. BerminghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any proposals for the recruitment of additional staff in the magistrates' courts in order to deal with the growing backlog of cases; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John PattenThere is provision for 200 additional court posts in the next financial year, and we shall obviously have local operational difficulties in mind in considering applications for increases in complement. We shall keep the position under review in the light of the outcome of the arbitration on the current pay negotiations. We also hope to increase, through the provision of training, the number of staff from within the courts service qualified to act as court clerks.