§ 41. Sir Sydney ChapmanTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will make a statement on her plans to reform the lay magistracy. [150777]
§ Jane KennedyThe report by Rod Morgan and Neil Russell, "The Judiciary in the Magistrates' Courts", published on 14 December, concluded that to abolish or greatly diminish the role of the lay magistracy would not be widely understood or supported in the country, and the Government agree with that view.
Lord Justice Auld is currently conducting his independent review of the criminal courts. It would be premature to comment on that until he submits his report.