§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what guidance the Judicial Studies Board will be offering to judges and magistrates on the interpretation of sections 1, 2 and 3 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe Judicial Studies Board has already issued guidance on the Criminal Justice Act 1991 to both the professional and the lay judiciary. Judges of the Court of Appeal and the High Court were given a briefing in the Lord Chief Justice's court. Judges, recorders and assistant recorders sitting in Crown courts received an 81-page guide to the sentencing provisions of the Act as part of the "Crown Court Bench Book on Sentencing" and attended conferences at which there were lectures and discussion on the Act. The board produced an 18-page introduction to the Act and a copy of this document was sent to each magistrate. A comprehensive training pack was also produced to assist those, usually the justices clerks, who train the magistrates.