§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent by his Department on the preparation of court officers in advance of the Human Rights Act 1998; how many court officers(a) had and (b) had not received training by 2 October; and what work the Department has been involved in preparing other Government Departments for the implementation of the Act. [139089]
§ Mr. StrawThe Home Office prompted and helped to co-ordinate public authority preparations for the Human Rights Act in a number of ways. A series of circulars from the Home Office Permanent Secretary helped to keep Departments up to date with Human Rights Act developments, made recommendations as to what Departments should do to prepare for implementation and passed on examples of best practice. Working with the Human Rights Task Force, we produced a range of guidance and information material on the Act for public authorities. And we have established a helpdesk to assist public authorities and the general public with queries about the Act. The Home Office is not responsible for the Court Service, but I understand that prior to 2 October 147W there was a range of awareness raising activities from which all staff in the Court Service and magistrates courts benefited. These included face to face training, cascade training and awareness raising through the use of written material and team briefings. The training was carried out in-house and costs met from existing budgets. A total of £4.5 million has been spent on judicial training for the Human Rights Act.