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672268

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	thebigword
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters under the contract with <i>thebigword</i>; and if so, what is it, and against what baseline it is measured.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4606
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>All our new language service contracts contain robust performance and charging provisions which are designed to ensure the value for money and affordability of the services provided by the department's suppliers. However, we have not felt it appropriate to set a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters, which is a demand-led service, given the importance we attach to the provision of such support to those who most need it.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:22:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672269

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	thebigword
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the contract with <i>thebigword</i> for court interpreters specifies any particular level or type of qualification which individual interpreters are expected to have.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4607
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>Bookings are classified depending on their complexity level, namely: ‘standard’, ‘complex’ and ‘complex written’. These complexity levels were determined by each Commissioning Body.</p><p> </p><p>I can confirm that the contract sets out the minimum level of qualification and experience a language professional is required to have in order to work on each complexity level of booking. Details of these qualifications can be found at: <a href="https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137" target="_blank">https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137</a></p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:23:54 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672273

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	thebigword
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government which company, or companies, are being sub-contracted by <i>thebigword</i> to provide court interpreting services; and whether those companies are subject to quality assurance.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4611
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>To ensure a high and consistent level of fulfilment across all geographical areas and in rare languages, thebigword have partnered with a number of subcontractors, namely: Global Language Services Limited, Cintra Translations Limited, Debonair Languages Ltd, Supreme Linguistic Services Ltd, Mango Spice Language Solutions, J-anne Interpreting and Translation Service Limited, Global Translation Services and Language River.</p><p> </p><p>Thebigword must ensure that its subcontracts contain obligations no less onerous on the sub-contractor than those imposed on them by the Ministry, including those relating to quality and performance standards. Thebigword are also responsible for carrying out audits to ensure subcontractor adherence to the contract service specification.</p><p> </p><p>All language professionals provided by thebigword, whether directly or via subcontractor, will be subject to ongoing quality assurance provided by The Language Shop. This includes a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:27:17 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672270

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the cost, in the last quarter of 2016, of cancellations and adjournments of court hearings because no interpreter arrived, or because the interpreter arrived too late, or was an interpreter in the wrong language, or proved to be an inadequate interpreter; and how this cost compares with each quarter of the previous year.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4608
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:24:47 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672271

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, in the light of the payment levels and cancellation policy established by the Ministry of Justice.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4609
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The Ministry is keen to maintain the quality and capacity of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, to make sure that the justice system continues to be supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.</p><p> </p><p>The Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide us with independent quality assurance of the translation and interpretation services. This contract also includes the requirement for The Language Shop to develop and administer a Language Professional Trainee Scheme with the primary objective of increasing the resource available to the other language service suppliers in pursuit of fulfilling Commissioning Body bookings.</p><p> </p><p>The Trainee Scheme will provide one or more clear, structured and flexible pathways for part qualified language professionals to become qualified within specified timescales. The Language Shop, and the other language service suppliers, are also required to jointly promote and encourage participation in the Scheme at the point of registration and through industry and academic networks and events.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:26:00 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

672272

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2017
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Courts: Interpreters
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the provision of court interpreters is being independently monitored.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
	uin	HL4610
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2017 answer text <p>The new language service contracts began on 31 October 2016 and are subject to robust governance arrangements.</p><p>These include monthly meetings with suppliers and stakeholders to monitor and discuss, in detail, the quality of the services being provided and performance against contractual performance indicators. The contracts also provide for the Ministry to audit the suppliers to verify the accuracy of contractual payments, management information, and compliance with contractual obligations.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide independent quality assurance of the services provided under the other contracts, including those awarded to the thebigword Ltd. The Language Shop undertakes this assurance in a number of ways, including managing the Ministry’s register of interpreters, conducting an annual audit of supplier processes for introducing new linguists, and a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.</p><p> </p><p>The Language Shop also has a responsibility to assure the correct levels of qualifications, skills, security clearance and experience are held by each linguist through their ongoing assessment programme and in response to complaints or specific concerns during the contract period.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 26/01/2017 14:26:43 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
	tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins