HC Deb 22 June 1995 vol 262 cc327-32W
Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many days each of the full-time Liverpool district judges, formerly registrars, have been absent in each of the last 10 years for which the information is available. [28925]

Mr. John M. Taylor

The question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.

Letter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. David Alton, dated 22 June 1995: The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to your Question about the number of days each Liverpool district judge has been absent. I should explain that each district judge is expected to sit between 215 and 220 days each year. This includes sitting at a court centre and other official business, such as training and conferences. The table provided in PQ 95/605 shows that in 1993 and 1994 the full-time district judges at Liverpool exceeded the number of days they are expected to sit each year. In these circumstances, it is therefore inappropriate to refer to absences.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (1) what procedure should be followed by persons who wish the Lord Chancellor to be apprised of matters which are or may be relevant to the exercise of his powers to remove from office or otherwise discipline district judges; [28943]

(2) what powers the Lord Chancellor has to remove district judges from office or otherwise discipline them. [28940]

Mr. Taylor

Under the provisions of the County Courts Act 1984 the Lord Chancellor has power to remove a district judge from office on account of misbehaviour or on account of the district judge's inability to perform the duties of his or her office. The Lord Chancellor is unable to comment on, or intervene in, judicial decisions or the conduct of legal proceedings by a judge. The appropriate recourse in relation to such matters is through the appellate process provided by statute. Persons wishing to make a complaint about the conduct of any member of the judiciary should write to the Lord Chancellor.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department which full-time Liverpool district judges, formerly registrars, have sat in the Liverpool district of the High Court and Liverpool county court in each of the last 10 years for which information is available. [28934]

Mr. Taylor

The question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.

Letter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. David Alton, dated 22 June 1995: The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to the above Question about the district judges at Liverpool.

The full-time district judges who have sat at Liverpool in the past ten years are as follows:

1985

  • Morris-Jones
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Harrison
  • Harris
  • Richardson1

1986

  • Morris-Jones
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Richardson1
  • Wolfson1

1987

  • Morris-Jones
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • McCullagh
  • Richardson1
  • Wolfson1

1988

  • Morris-Jones
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • McCullagh
  • Richardson1
  • Wolfson1

1989

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • McCullagh
  • Travers
  • Richardson1
  • Wolfson1

1990

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • McCullagh
    • 329
  • Travers
  • Richardson1
  • Wolfson1

1991

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Wolfson
  • Knopf
  • Richardson1
  • McCullagh1
  • Travers1
  • Bennett1

1992

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Wolfson
  • Knopf
  • Richardson1
  • McCullagh1
  • Travers1
  • Bennett1

1993

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Wolfson
  • Knopf
  • Richardson1
  • McCullagh1
  • Travers1
  • Bennett1
  • Johnson1

1994

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Wolfson
  • Knopf
  • McCullagh1
  • Travers1
  • Bennett1
  • Johnson1
  • Frost1

1995

  • Grundy
  • Berkson
  • Wilkinson
  • Gee
  • Harris
  • Wolfson
  • Knopf
  • McCullagh1
  • Travers1
  • Bennett1
  • Johnson1
  • Frost1

1 Sitting part-time at Liverpool and part-time at other court centres on the Liverpool Group.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how much remuneration has been paid to each full-time Liverpool district judge, formerly registrar,in each of the last 10 years for which information is available. [28935]

Mr. Taylor

The question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.

Letter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. David Alton dated 22 June 1995: The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to the above Question about how much remuneration has been paid to the Liverpool district judges. As you will appreciate specific details about individual judge's salaries are confidential. However I am able to provide you with a list of pay scales for district judges from 1 November 1984 to 1 April 1995. These are as follows:

£
1 November 1984 28,500
1 July 1985 29,925
1 March 1986 30,500
1 July 1986 31,850
1 April 1987 33,204
1 October 1987 33,500
1 April 1988 34,840
1 October 1988 37,500
1 April 1989 39,400
1 April 1990 41,750
1 January 1991 43,450
1 April 1991 46,700
1 August 1991 48,200
1 December 1991 49,100
1 April 1992 52,520
1 April 1993 54,035
1 April 1994 56,974
1 April 1995 59,327

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how much time each full-time Liverpool district judge, formerly registrar, has spent(a) sitting, (b) on other business and (c) in total in his capacity as a district judge in each of the last 10 years for which information is available. [28936]

Mr. Taylor

The question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.

Letter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. David Alton, dated 22 June 1995: The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to your Question about how much time the Liverpool district judges have spent sitting and on other business in the past ten years. I should explain that information is available only for the past three years. The following tables show for each year since 1993 the number of days each full-time district judge at Liverpool has spent sitting and on other official business, such as training and conferences. You have also asked for the annual total amount of time each district judge has spent in his official capacity. This figure, which also includes annual leave and sick leave, is given in the final column of each table.

1993
Name Sitting Other business Total
Grundy 178.5 51 249.5
Berkson 192.5 45 248.5
Wilkinson 179.5 47 248.5
Gee 219 13 249.5
Harris 213.5 8.5 248.5
Wolfson 207.5 6 248.5
Knopf 207.5 21 249.5
Richardson1 21 0 21
McCullagh1 87.5 9 100.5
Travers1 44 2 48
Bennett1 7 0 7
Johnson1 37 1 39
1 Figures refer to part-time sittings at Liverpool. These full-time district judges also sit at other court centres in the Liverpool Group.

1994
Name Sitting Other business Total
Grundy 168.5 49 249.5
Berkson 183.5 40 249.5
Wilkinson 175.5 27.5 243
Gee 213.5 9 255.5
Harris 209.5 13 251.5
Wolfson 191.5 6 248.5
Knopf 227.5 11 260.5
McCullagh1 84.5 5 99.5
Travers1 42 0 46
Bennett1 44 3 49
Johnson1 164 6.5 198.5
Frost1 50 0 58
1 Figures refer to part-time sittings at Liverpool. These full-time district judges also sit at other court centres in the Liverpool Group.

1995 (up to end May)
Name Sitting Other business Total
Grundy 68 9 79
Berkson 79.5 10 101.5
Wilkinson 73.5 13 101.5
Gee 91 3 101.5
Harris 86.5 3 101.5
Wolfson 82.5 3 101.5
Knopf 86.5 3.5 106

1995 (up to end May)
Name Sitting Other business Total
McCullagh1 32.5 4.5 40.5
Travers1 16.5 0 18
Bennet1 16.5 0 20
Johnson1 74.5 3.5 82.5
Frost1 34 1 42
1 Figures refer to part-time sittings at Liverpool. These full-time district judges also sit at other court centres in the Liverpool Group.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what public expense other than in terms of remuneration has been incurred in respect of maintaining the full-time district judges at Liverpool including the costs or relative proportion thereof(a) buildings, (b) equipment, (c) support staff, (d) pensions and national insurance and (e) other expenses in each of the last 10 years for which information is available. [28937]

Mr. Taylor

The question concerns a specific operational matter on which the chief executive of the Court Service is best placed to provide an answer and I have accordingly asked the chief executive to reply direct.

Letter from M. D. Huebner to Mr. David Alton, dated 22 June 1995: The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, has asked me to reply to your Question about the cost of maintaining district judges at Liverpool. I am sorry to have to tell you that this information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many complaints have been made about or against full-time Liverpool district judges, formerly registrars, to (i) the Lord Chancellor in person and (ii) the Lord Chancellor's Department in each of the last 10 years for which information is available. [28939]

Mr. Taylor

Records relating to complaints about the conduct of district judges have been kept only since 1992. They are broken down into the following categories: (i) complaints made to the Lord Chancellor via a Member of Parliament and (ii) complaints from all other sources. No complaints are recorded under the first category. Under the second, the figures are as follows:

  • 1992: 2
  • 1993: 1
  • 1994: 5
  • 1995 (part): 1

Mr. Alton

To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what documentation or other evidence must be produced by a district judge to the Lord Chancellor's Department to substantiate or justify his absence through illness. [28938]

Mr. Taylor

District judges are expected to notify the Department of any sickness absence within 24 hours of the first day of incapacity and to follow this up with a self-certificate for absences of seven days or less. A doctor's statement is required for absences exceeding seven days.