Supplementary evidence submitted by Rt
Hon Lord Falconer of Thoroton QC, Secretary of State for Constitutional
Affairs and Lord Chancellor
UK SUPREME COURT
During the evidence session on 16 November,
I was asked about the running costs of the Appellate Committee
and the UK Supreme Court. I thought it might be helpful to the
Committee to provide some additional information.
While of course I do not have the benefit of
the Hansard record, my recollection is that Mr Bottomley questioned
whether the current running costs of the Appellate Committee are
in the order of £600,000 and how much the Supreme Court running
costs would be in comparison. In my response, I may not have made
clear that the running costs of the Appellate Committee are actually
significantly higher than Mr Bottomley suggested.
It is not entirely straightforward to separate
the administrative costs of the Appellate Committee from the generality
of expenditure within the House of Lords but, from discussions
with the Judicial Office, my officials have produced what we regard
as a reasonably reliable apportionment. Existing expenditure on
staff salaries and other administrative costs for 2002-03 in the
Judicial Office amounted to approximately £680,000. A further
£180,000 can be attributed to the Judicial Office for the
cost of utilities, accommodation, overheads, telephone and postage.
The Judicial Office also benefits from the use of staff employed
by the wider House of Lords (library, catering etc), costing around
£250,000. To this must be added the costs of judicial remuneration,
which is £2.1 million, paid annually from the consolidated
fund.
Altogether this implies an approximate annual
cost to the public purse of just over £3.2 million per annum
in order to service the existing judicial work of the Appellate
Committee of the House of Lords.
It is impossible at this stage to give an exact
figure on the likely running costs of the Supreme Court as this
is dependent on the building ultimately selected to house the
Court and the chosen procurement route. Nevertheless, it is fair
to say that the running costs are likely to be in the region of
£7 million-12 million (including judicial salaries). This
does not take into account the likely efficiency savings resulting
from co-locating the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council with
the Supreme Court.
By way of clarification, I should also explain
that fees will be recoverable on the proportion of the running
costs which relate to the civil work of the Supreme Court.
Although the overall running costs are higher
than those currently required to support the Law Lords, the new
Supreme Court will bring with it improved facilities and greater
accessibility for the public. I think it is a small price to pay
for what Lord Bingham has described as a "cardinal feature
of a liberal democracy."
Rt Hon Lord Falconer of Thoroton QC
Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and
Lord Chancellor
17 November 2004
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