§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will make a statement on progress towards his Department's objective of achieving full cost recovery in the civil courts. [14928]
§ Ms Rosie WintertonThe Lord Chancellor announced in another place on 19 November 1998' that charging for civil court fees should not prevent access to justice; that protection should be provided for litigants of modest means; but litigants should not expect the taxpayer to pay for court services if they could afford to do so themselves. My Department is currently working on a major programme to establish the right balance between those principals in order to achieve its objective of full cost recovery in the civil courts.
1 Written answer in response to a question [HL 3925] from Lord Burlison.