§ Mr. Sean HughesTo ask the Attorney-General what will be the extra manpower involved in carrying out the new responsibilities proposed in the Courts and Legal Services Bill in respect of authorised practitioners; and what is the anticipated extra financial cost.
§ The Attorney-GeneralThe annual cost of the Authorised Conveyancing Practitioners Board, the conveyancing ombudsman and the conveyancing appeal tribunals is anticipated to be approximately £0.9 million in its first full year. The secretariats and support staff will268W require about 15 staff and the board itself, the ombudsman and the tribunal members will total a maximum of 13 individuals. It is intended that the board, the ombudsman and their secretariats should be self-financing and that any initial Government funding should decrease as quickly as possible. It is not possible, however, to estimate at this stage how much of any Government grant might be recouped from fees.