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LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
The Parliamentary Secretary was asked--
Magistracy
30. Mr. Martin Linton (Battersea): What steps the Government have taken to ensure that magistrates are representative of the communities they serve. [96375]
32. Mr. Lawrie Quinn (Scarborough and Whitby):
What steps the Government have taken to ensure that magistrates are representative of the communities they serve. [96377]
The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (Jane Kennedy):
My noble and learned Friend the Lord Chancellor requires his advisory committees to make strenuous efforts to ensure that benches broadly reflect the communities that they serve in terms of gender, ethnic origin, geographical spread, occupation and political affiliation.
Mr. Linton:
I welcomed my hon. Friend to her first public engagement, in Battersea; I now congratulate her on her appointment as she stands at the Dispatch Box.
I congratulate the Lord Chancellor's Department on having appointed so many justices of the peace from the ethnic minorities--I believe that the figure is 6.5 per cent.--and also on the fact that 50 per cent. of appointments have been women, but does the Minister not believe that it is regrettable that only 1 per cent. of appointments to the bench have been of young people under the age of 30? Will she consider reviewing the unofficial age limit, which I believe is currently 26, on appointment to the bench?
Jane Kennedy:
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his kind words, and to hon. Ladies and Gentlemen for the
My noble and learned Friend the Lord Chancellor has instructed his advisory committee to make strenuous efforts to improve the gender, ethnic and political balances on the bench. A sub-committee will shortly be established specifically to address those issues, and I will ask my noble and learned Friend to consider the points that my hon. Friend made.
Mr. Quinn:
May I, too, congratulate my hon. Friend on her new position? I very much welcome the answer given some time ago. What representations has she made to employers' organisations to ensure that people who are in full-time work are given the opportunity to participate in this important part of our society?
Jane Kennedy:
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising that issue and allowing me to explain the work that is going on in the area. It is an increasing problem, which my noble and learned Friend takes very seriously. In literature and seminars, employers are shown that the training that magistrates receive, and the experience that they gain on the bench, can be a positive advantage for the individual and an asset to the employer. The Lord Chancellor is considering what else he may need to do, in partnership with the Magistrates Association, to encourage more employers to allow their staff time off to become magistrates.
Mr. Christopher Gill (Ludlow):
In the light of the answer that the hon. Lady gave to the hon. Member for Battersea (Mr. Linton), will she give the House an assurance that she will oppose any proposals to close magistrates courts in rural areas?
Jane Kennedy:
Decisions about how magistrates courts are organised, the services that they provide and where they are provided are decisions for the local magistrates courts committees.
Mr. Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath):
I add the official Opposition's congratulations to the hon. Lady and the hon. Member for Wyre Forest (Mr. Lock), the two new Ministers in the Lord Chancellor's Department. We know that the Government are very keen on job creation, but we observe that it seems that two Ministers are now needed to do the job that was previously done by one.
Can the Minister confirm that it is important to ensure that it is the people who can take the best decisions who are appointed as magistrates? That is far more important than any matters of political correctness. While we are on the subject of the best people for legal jobs, would the Minister like to comment on the report in today's Evening Standard, which quotes the Lord Chancellor's biographer as saying that he may be quietly eased out before the next election as unsuited to politics?
Jane Kennedy:
I have not seen that report, but given the important role of the lay magistracy, the hon. Gentleman might have taken the opportunity to ask me to join him in paying tribute to the thousands of men and
31. Mr. Keith Darvill (Upminster):
What is the role of private practice solicitors within the Community Legal Service. [R] [96376]
34. Ms Sally Keeble (Northampton, North):
What the role is of private practice solicitors within the Community Legal Service. [96381]
The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (Mr. David Lock):
The Community Legal Service will deliver the entire range of legal advice and assistance services, including representation, outside those delivered by the Criminal Defence Service. Private practice solicitors will be at the heart of the Community Legal Service, which will be a partnership between the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. They are essential to the success of the local networks of legal services that are being set up, and they will ensure the maximum possible coverage for the Community Legal Service, to the benefit of the public.
Mr. Darvill:
I congratulate my hon. Friend on his well-deserved appointment to the Front Bench. Does he agree that private practice solicitors are essential to the development of the Community Legal Service, and that the Lord Chancellor's Department and the Law Society should ensure that all private practice solicitors are aware of local initiatives, such as the advice providers' forum in the London borough of Havering?
Mr. Lock:
I thank my hon. Friend for his kind words. He is correct to say that it is vital that private practice solicitors should be involved in the Community Legal Service. Solicitors and the Law Society have been involved in the Government's plans from the earliest stages. There is a reference to them in paragraph 3.3 of the consultation paper, and Law Society representatives are serving on the quality task force. In addition, solicitors are serving on many of the 50 pioneer partnerships establishing best practice for the Community Legal Service up and down the country. We welcome the constructive role that solicitors are playing in making the service a reality.
Ms Keeble:
I, too, congratulate my hon. Friend on his appointment. How will his Department ensure that private practice solicitors who work for the Community Legal Service will provide a high-quality service? How will he ensure that solicitors co-operate fully with the voluntary sector so that people may receive advice and help at the right level?
Mr. Lock:
I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her comments. Under the traditional legal aid system, the quality of advice received could vary from excellent to appalling. Under powers in the Access to Justice Act 1999, all solicitors who provide services to the Community Legal Service will have a contract. The Legal
Mr. Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy):
The Minister is plainly keen to answer queries on the Community Legal Service as there are two identical questions on the Order Paper. Has he thought through the circumstances of typically rural areas such as my constituency, where a person might have to travel 35 miles to see a solicitor? How will the service work in reality?
Mr. Lock:
The hon. Gentleman must appreciate that the questions on the Order Paper reflect a wide interest in the Community Legal Service. He is right to raise the issue of rural areas. Under the traditional legal aid system, we had no way of targeting legal services or prioritising the needs of people in rural areas. There was no way to pay for legal services provided other than by qualified solicitors, although some of the best advice--on benefits, debt and housing, for example--can come from people who are not fully qualified solicitors. We hope to develop a Community Legal Service gateway to allow internet access which will be particularly relevant to those who live a long way from a solicitor, or who are disabled. Various strategies are being developed, and I entirely agree that rural issues are important to the development of the service.
Mr. Owen Paterson (North Shropshire):
Will there be more or fewer rural magistrates at the end of the Parliament than at the beginning?
Mr. Lock:
The hon. Gentleman does not understand the nature of the Community Legal Service if he links it with magistrates. The Government value magistrates and, as my hon. Friend said, decisions about magistrates and magistrates courts are made primarily under legislation that the previous Government passed, and that the hon. Gentleman supports. They are within the control of local magistrates courts committees.
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