§ Dr. Julian LewisTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will review court procedures for conducting means assessments prior to sentencing of convicted criminals. [R] [87556]
§ Mr. Straw[holding answer 29 June 1999]Courts are required by law to inquire into the financial circumstances of a convicted offender before fixing the amount of any fine. Means assessments are also currently carried out in criminal cases before the grant of legal aid.
A case is pending before the European Court of Human Rights questioning the role of the Justices' Clerk in conducting means inquiries in magistrates courts. Once the outcome of the case is known the Government will consider what action, if any, needs to be taken.
The Access to Justice Bill includes a proposal to transfer from the Justices' Clerk to the Justices' Chief Executive the administrative responsibility for collecting fines. The Bill also proposes the abolition of means assessments before the granting of legal aid and the introduction of a power at the end of a case for the higher courts to order defendants to meet some or all of the defence costs. There will be power to assess the defendant's means before any such order is made.
The Government have no other plans to review court procedures in this area.