§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what is the average waiting time for trial at(a) magistrates courts and (b) Crown courts for defendants granted bail and those remanded in custody.
Mr. John M. TaylorThe readily available information for magistrates courts relates to proceedings for indictable
168W1 Provisional figures.
2 Including refusal.
§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of people remanded in custody by magistrates courts in each of the last five years.
§ Mr. MacleanThe information requested is given in the table. It is also published annually in chapter 8 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", a copy of which is in the Library.
Number of persons remanded in custody in England and Wales Thousands 1988 46.8 1989 49.6 1990 48.5 1991 50.8 1992 49.3
§ Ms RuddockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the proportion of persons in each police force area proceeded against at magistrates courts who are remanded on bail for(a) indictable offences and (b) summary offences.
§ Mr. MacleanThe data available for each police force area are not reliable enough to be able to answer this question. Information on a national basis is given in the table. These figures are published in chapter 8 of "Criminal Statistics, England and Wales", a copy of which is in the Library of the House.
—including either-way—offences. Sample surveys during 1993 show that the average time interval from first listing to completion of such cases at magistrates courts was 7.3 weeks for defendants remanded in custody throughout proceedings and 10.1 weeks for those remanded on bail only. Provisional figures for the Crown court show that the average time interval from committal for trial to start of hearing for cases disposed of during 1993 was 12.6 weeks for those remanded in custody and 16.7 weeks for those remanded on bail.