§ Mr. MichaelTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what consideration he has given to the potential for cost-saving advantages of funding more community mediation services as an alternative to litigation or, when the offence has arisen from an interpersonal dispute, to prosecution.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe Lord Chancellor is in favour of disputants resorting to mediation or other private 157W dispute resolution processes where they do not need the compulsion, certainty or finality that only the court can provide. We are currently reviewing the ways in which the tangible benefits of alternative dispute resolution might be harnessed to contribute to our programme of reducing delay, cost and complexity in civil litigation.
The potential of schemes involving mediation between offenders and victims to contribute to the process of cautioning as an alternative to prosecution is being considered by the Home Office.