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Crown Court (Exeter)

Nick Harvey: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans the

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Department has for the future of the Crown Court in Exeter; what impact he estimates this will have on the workings of the Crown Court in Barnstaple; and if he will make a statement. [152776]

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Mr. Leslie: The Crown Court in Exeter is due to relocate to purpose built accommodation at the end of 2004. The new premises will provide additional courtroom capacity, which takes account of the projected workload for Exeter over the next 20 years.

The impact of the new Exeter Court on the Crown Court in Barnstaple will not be considered until the new Exeter Courts are fully operational. If, at that stage, it is thought appropriate to make any changes to the current arrangements consultation with all interested parties will take place. There is therefore no immediate impact on the Crown Court in Barnstaple.

Hutton Inquiry

Mr. Amess: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what selection procedure was followed for the appointment of Lord Hutton to oversee the Dr. Kelly inquiry. [152676]

Mr. Leslie: Where a Government decide that they wish to invite a senior judge to conduct an Inquiry, the Prime Minister invites the Lord Chancellor to recommend a suitable judge. This process was followed on this occasion, and, after consulting the senior judiciary, the Lord Chancellor proposed Lord Hutton and he accepted the appointment.

Magistrates

Mr. Drew: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what measures he plans to reduce the age profile of magistrates benches, with specific reference to rural areas. [151776]

Mr. Leslie: The written ministerial statement made in this House on 6 November 2003, Official Report, columns 43–44WS, on the National Strategy for the Recruitment of Lay Magistrates announces the Secretary of State and Lord Chancellor's decision to remove the lower age limit for applicants to the magistracy who can show that they have the key qualities needed for appointment. This is intended to help in achieving a more diverse and better-balanced bench. The National Strategy itself contains proposals

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to encourage younger people, including advertising in a range of media, local radio and cinemas. A bus advertising campaign began on 1 November 2003. As a direct result of this 2,283 inquiries have been received of which 1,224 (54 per cent.) were from those aged between 18–40. Advisory Committees in rural areas regularly review the make-up of their benches at the outset of their recruitment campaigns with the intention of attracting the right range of people, using their local knowledge and ideas developed through the National Strategy.

Security Passes

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many security passes have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen by staff in (i) his Department and (ii) departmental agencies in the last 12 months. [147987]

Mr. Leslie: In the last 12 months, 113 security passes have been reported lost and 16 reported stolen by staff within the Department for Constitutional Affairs. Additionally 294 security passes were reported lost and 13 were reported stolen within the departmental agencies.

When a security pass is reported lost or stolen, appropriate steps are taken to reduce the risk of unauthorised access into any of the Department's buildings.

Statutory Sick Pay

Mr. Goodman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people employed in his Department have claimed statutory sick pay for (a) less than one week, (b) one to three weeks, (c) four to six weeks, (d) seven to 12 weeks, (e) 13 to 20 weeks and (f) 21 to 28 weeks in each year since 1997. [148630]

Mr. Lammy: The following table provides the number of people in my Department who have claimed statutory sick pay for the periods defined in each year since 1997.

My Department is committed to managing sickness absence effectively and to meeting the targets for reduced sickness absence as set out in the departmental plans.

	Less thanone week	One tothree weeks	Four tosix weeks	Seven to12 weeks	13 to20 weeks	21 to28 weeks	Total employees
1997	633	249	38	52	45	0	1,017
1998	1,537	717	115	154	80	0	2,603
1999	2,868	1,198	170	198	122	0	4,556
2000	2,834	1,284	190	205	172	0	4,685
2001	2,746	1,359	222	249	185	0	4,761
2002	3,242	1,507	228	298	197	0	5,472
2003	2,402	1,057	139	139	52	0	3,789

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