§ Mrs. Anne CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the average length of time which elapses between the committal of an offence and a court martial hearing in the military criminal justice system.
§ Mr. HanleyThe average length of time between the date an offence was committed—or it was discovered, or investigation of it started, where appropriate—and the date of the court martial hearing, across all three services, is about six months.
§ Mrs. Anne CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what proportion of the Army legal aid scheme budget was spent on the employment of civilian lawyers in 1991, 1992 and 1993;
(2) in what proportion of cases soldiers and NCOs use civilian rather than Army advocates when facing district courts martial;
(3) how many soldiers were retained and for how long, despite the expiry of their time in the Army, awaiting the conclusion of a district court martial proceeding in 1991, 1992 and 1993.
§ Mr. HanleyThe information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.