§ Mr. HoltTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many awards were made against claimants for frivolous or vexatious cases at industrial tribunals in each year since 1982; and what was the average value of these claims.
§ Mr. NichollsDetails of all cases in which costs were awarded are readily available only for the last two years. There were 287 such cases in the 12 months to 31 March 1986 with a median award of £92. The corresponding figures for the 12 months to 31 March 1987 were 294 and £285, respectively. A breakdown between applicants and respondents is not readily available but in practice the vast majority of cost awards are against applicants.
§ Mr. BatisteTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what representations he has received concerning the effectiveness of pre-hearing assessments in industrial tribunals.
§ Mr. NichollsI am aware that criticisms have been made of the pre-hearing assessment procedure, most recently by Justice in its report on industrial tribunals. I am considering these criticisms in conjunction with the presidents of the industrial tribunals.
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§ Mr. BatisteTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what proportion of applications to industrial tribunals in each of the last three years for which figures are available have been subject to a pre-hearing
12 months ending Proportion of applications subject to pre-hearing assessment Per cent. Number of costs warnings issued Number of applications withdrawn or settled after costs warning 31 December 1984 9.4 1,266 1,004 31 March 1986 3.7 672 640 31 March 1987 3.9 517 500
§ Mr. BatisteTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many awards of costs have been made by industrial tribunals during the most recent three years for which figures are available in respect of unfair dismissal cases; how they have been divided between awards against applicants and awards against respon-dents; and of all such awards how many did not follow a warning as to costs in a pre-hearing assessment.
§ Mr. NichollsInformation on the number of cost awards in cases of unfair dismissal is readily available only for the two years ending 31 March 1987. The numbers are as follows:
12 months ending 31 March 1986: 185 12 months ending 31 March 1987: 229 I regret that the remaining information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.