§ Mr. LevittTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what progress is being made towards establishing a single register of public service interpreters in the Court Service. [90443]
§ Mr. VazThe Court Service, with other users of the criminal justice system, will use interpreters from the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI) as the need arises. In civil proceedings, the courts do not provide interpreters; it is for the party concerned to obtain and pay for them. The court can recommend the Institute of Linguists or any other appropriate body.
§ Mr. LevittTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many persons on the national register of public service interpreters(a) have obtained the diploma of public service interpreting, legal option, (b) hold a legal qualification and (c) can demonstrate that they have more than 100 hours' experience of interpreting in court. [90444]
§ Mr. VazThe national register of public service interpreters is maintained by the Institute of Linguists (IoL), which is a separate body from the Court Service. I understand(a) that there are 224 (English law) and 9 (Scottish law) interpreters with a diploma in public service interpreting, legal option; (b) it is not known how many interpreters have a legal qualification; and (c) figures are not kept to show how many interpreters have more than 100 hours experience of interpreting in court.