§ Mr. GarnierTo ask the Minister of State, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will make a statement on his policy on the amalgamation of magistrates' courts committee areas. [70590]
§ Mr. HoonThe Lord Chancellor and I have made it clear on a number of occasions that we see many benefits accruing from the greater alignment of magistrates' courts committees with criminal justice agency boundaries. I refer the hon. and learned Member to my statement to this House of 29 October 1997,Official Report, columns 901–05.
In particular, alignment will lead to an increased familiarity with each other's policies; improved co-ordination in the implementation of national and regional policies; improved relations between the chief officers of each agency; and the removal of duplication of effort and the speeding up of decision making at a strategic level. This is in addition to financial benefits which can be realised by the magistrates' courts committees concerned, all of which are likely to lead to a more effective, and more efficient, service.
§ Mr. GarnierTo ask the Minister of State, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment he has made of the rate of case through-put in magistrates' courts in(a) urban and (b) rural areas.[70589]
§ Mr. HoonThe data held on magistrates' courts are not available broken down by urban and rural areas. While an urban/rural breakdown is not available, magistrates' courts committees can alternatively be grouped into English metropolitan areas, English non-metropolitan areas, London and Wales.
The Lord Chancellor's Department magistrates' courts Management Information System collects information on magistrates' courts activity. One of the indicators produced by the Management Information System is the number of completed weighted cases per sitting hour.
458WIn 1997, for magistrates' courts committees in English metropolitan areas the completed weighted caseload dealt with per sitting hour was 10.4, for those in English non-metropolitan areas and also those in the London area the figure was 9.9 per hour, and for those in Wales the figure was 10.4 per hour. For comparison, the completed weighted caseload dealt with per sitting hour in all magistrates' courts in England and Wales was 10.1 per hour.
§ Mr. GarnierTo ask the Minister of State, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment he has made of the savings or additional costs to public funds caused by(a) the public, (b) lawyers, (c) the police, (d) witnesses, (e) defendants and (f) magistrates' through the closure of magistrates' courts. [70591]
§ Mr. HoonMagistrates' courts are locally managed by magistrates' courts committees under the provisions of the Justices of the Peace Act 1997. Decisions concerning the location and number of magistrates' courts in their area are for the relevant MCC to determine. A local authority that contributes financially may appeal to the Lord Chancellor against a proposed closure. In the event of an appeal, costs are only one factor to be considered. Other common themes are accessibility and facilities for all court users, workload, and the extra time and distance users may have to travel. In the absence of an appeal, however, the Lord Chancellor plays no part in the process.