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1138516

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Employment Tribunals Service: Fees and Charges
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2019 to Question 272279, how many people (a) are entitled to be and (b) have been reimbursed for employment tribunal fees.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	276237
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>The number of people (a) entitled to an employment tribunal fee refund is 64,426 and (b) the number that have been reimbursed is 33,787.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/07/2019 10:06:11 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1138526

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Probate Service: Staff
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by the Probate Service in each of the last six months.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	276239
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>Jan-19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Feb-19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Mar-19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Apr-19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>May-19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Jun-19</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>AGENCY STAFF RESOURCE</p></td><td><p>29.4</p></td><td><p>27.4</p></td><td><p>26.4</p></td><td><p>26.4</p></td><td><p>26.4</p></td><td><p>26.4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>FTE STAFF RESOURCE</p></td><td><p>124.49</p></td><td><p>122.94</p></td><td><p>120.94</p></td><td><p>120.9</p></td><td><p>120.9</p></td><td><p>118</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Further to these totals we have arrange additional help from HMCTS and other government departments, these are:</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>HMRC SURGE TEAM</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>21</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>BRADFORD DSCS</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>HMCTS LEGAL ADVISERS</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>2.5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>ADDITIONAL HMCTS RESOURCE</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>0</p></td><td><p>5</p></td><td><p>9</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>TOTALS (FTE)</p></td><td><p>153.89</p></td><td><p>150.34</p></td><td><p>147.34</p></td><td><p>147.3</p></td><td><p>147.3</p></td><td><p>179.9</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>In addition to these we also now have 35 staff in the Courts and Tribunals Service Centre who are trained in probate.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/07/2019 09:58:45 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1138527

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Probate Service: Redundancy
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many members of staff have left the Probate Service in each of the last six months.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	276240
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>6 members of staff have left the Probate Service in the last 6 months.</p><p> </p><p>Our new online service is making probate simpler and more convenient for bereaved people. Staffing is making increased and the digital service further improves to help reduce waiting times.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/07/2019 10:18:15 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1138528

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Probate Service: Agency Workers
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many agency staff have been employed by the Probate Service in each of the last six months.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	276241
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Jan-19</p></td><td><p>Feb-19</p></td><td><p>Mar-19</p></td><td><p>Apr-19</p></td><td><p>May-19</p></td><td><p>Jun-19</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>AGENCY STAFF RESOURCE (Full Time Equivalent)</p></td><td><p>29.4</p></td><td><p>27.4</p></td><td><p>26.4</p></td><td><p>29</p></td><td><p>29</p></td><td><p>29</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Our new online service is making probate simpler and more convenient for bereaved people.</p><p> </p><p>Some grants are experiencing delays of between four and six weeks as a result of problems in April but we are now issuing in excess of 1,000 grants a day that is bringing waiting times down further.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/07/2019 10:22:05 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1138529

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Probate Service: Length of Service
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average length of service for a member of staff at the Probate Service was in each of the last four quarters.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds East
	tabling member printed	Richard Burgon
	uin	276242
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Q1 (JUL18-SEP18) (in years)</p></td><td><p>Q2 (OCT18-DEC18) (in years)</p></td><td><p>Q3 (JAN19-MAR19) (in years)</p></td><td><p>Q4 (APR19-JUN19) (in years)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>BIRMINGHAM</p></td><td><p>16</p></td><td><p>16</p></td><td><p>16</p></td><td><p>16</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>BRIGHTON</p></td><td><p>8.2</p></td><td><p>7.7</p></td><td><p>7.4</p></td><td><p>6.2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>CARDIFF/BRISTOL</p></td><td><p>13.65</p></td><td><p>13.65</p></td><td><p>13.65</p></td><td><p>14</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>LEEDS</p></td><td><p>18</p></td><td><p>18</p></td><td><p>16</p></td><td><p>16</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>LIVERPOOL</p></td><td><p>18.4</p></td><td><p>17</p></td><td><p>17</p></td><td><p>17</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>LONDON</p></td><td><p>20.6</p></td><td><p>18.1</p></td><td><p>18.1</p></td><td><p>18.1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>MANCHESTER</p></td><td><p>20</p></td><td><p>20</p></td><td><p>20</p></td><td><p>21.8</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>NEWCASTLE/IPSWICH</p></td><td><p>15.4</p></td><td><p>15.4</p></td><td><p>15.25</p></td><td><p>15.25</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>OXFORD</p></td><td><p>13</p></td><td><p>10</p></td><td><p>10</p></td><td><p>10</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>WINCHESTER</p></td><td><p>21</p></td><td><p>22</p></td><td><p>22</p></td><td><p>22</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>total</p></td><td><p>164.25</p></td><td><p>157.85</p></td><td><p>155.4</p></td><td><p>156.35</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>average</p></td><td><p>16.425</p></td><td><p>15.785</p></td><td><p>15.54</p></td><td><p>15.635</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 16/07/2019 11:06:17 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4493 label Biography information for Richard Burgon

1138066

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Translation Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much HM Courts and Tribunals Service has spent on (a) courts translation services and (b) Capita Translation Services in each of the last 10 financial years.
	tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
	tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
	uin	275723
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>HMCTS was created on the 1 April 2011. We are unable to provide information for financial years prior to that date. This question has been interpreted to mean costs for all language services, both translators, and interpreters provided in a court setting, and for printed materials available in HMCTS buildings.</p><p> </p><p>The contract with Capita commenced on 30th January 2012, and ended on 30th October 2016. The new Language Services Contracts commenced on the 31st October 2016, with services provided by thebigword Group Limited, Clarion Interpreting and The Language Shop.</p><p> </p><p>The spend by Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service on courts translations services was as follows, by financial year:</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>Total Cost (£)</p></td><td><p>Capita Charges (£)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011-12 (Commenced from 30th January 2012)</p></td><td><p>7,080,332</p></td><td><p>1,440</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012-13</p></td><td><p>4,955,510</p></td><td><p>1,083,181</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013-14</p></td><td><p>7,305,324</p></td><td><p>6,501,870</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014-15</p></td><td><p>7,431,045</p></td><td><p>7,182,866</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2015-16</p></td><td><p>7,111,949</p></td><td><p>6,548,023</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2016-17</p></td><td><p>9,683,794</p></td><td><p>4,264,196</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Our most recent statistics show language service requests are at their highest since the new contract was introduced in 2016 the clear majority – 97% - were fulfilled. It is vital that victims, witnesses and defendants understand what is happening in court to ensure justice is done, and we will always take steps to ensure a qualified interpreter is provided when needed.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 15/07/2019 16:17:49 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1138105

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Solicitors
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the reform of legal aid on average annual earnings of legal aid solicitors.
	tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
	tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
	uin	275783
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>On 7 February 2019, the Government published the Post Implementation Review (PIR) of Part 1 of The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-implementation-review-of-part-1-of-laspo" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-implementation-review-of-part-1-of-laspo</a></p><p> </p><p>The review did not look at the earnings of individual solicitors, but reported instead on the impact on legal aid providers, including solicitors firms and individual barristers.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 15/07/2019 16:01:05 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1138106

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Legal Aid Scheme
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the financial impact on defendants of the introduction of an upper limit on disposable income for people claiming legal aid for Crown Court representation.
	tabling member constituency	Cardiff Central
	tabling member printed	Jo Stevens
	uin	275784
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <table><tbody><tr><td><p>On 7 February 2019, the Government published the Post Implementation Review (PIR) of Part 1 of The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 which included an assessment of the impact of the £37,500 disposable income threshold introduced at the Crown Court: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-implementation-review-of-part-1-of-laspo" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/post-implementation-review-of-part-1-of-laspo</a></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Alongside the PIR, the Government also published its Legal Support Action Plan in which it announced a comprehensive review of the wider legal aid eligibility regime; this will include the Crown Court thresholds. The review is expected to conclude by Summer 2020 after which we will publish a full consultation paper setting out our future policy proposals in this area. We will seek to implement any final recommendations as soon as practicable following public consultation.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 15/07/2019 16:26:26 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4425 label Biography information for Jo Stevens

1138145

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Legal Aid Scheme: Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of local authority areas that do not have a housing legal aid provider in England and Wales.
	tabling member constituency	Coventry South
	tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
	uin	275673
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>The LAA commissions services on a ‘Procurement Area’ basis. Procurement Areas align to one or a number of combined local authority areas and have been developed based on various local factors.</p><p> </p><p>Individuals are not limited to accessing legal advice providers in the Procurement Area where they live and may access services from providers located in neighbouring local authorities, or at other contracted legal advice providers located locally.</p><p> </p><p>The LAA has recently tendered for new face-to-face housing contracts across the 134 housing and debt procurement areas across England and Wales. As of 30 June 2019, there is at least one provider offering housing and debt services in all but 4 procurement areas, and the LAA is considering how to secure provision in these areas and will set out next steps shortly.</p><p> </p><p>Legal advice is still available in these areas through the Civil Legal Advice telephone service and irrespective of a client’s location in England and Wales, legal advice for housing remains available through a telephone service as well.</p><p> </p><p>The following table shows the number of providers in each of the locations enquired about, and the number of procurement areas which fall within each.</p><p> </p><p>The Legal Aid Agency keeps availability of legal support under constant review and takes urgent action whenever it has concerns.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Geographical Location</p></td><td><p># of Procurement Areas</p></td><td><p># of Providers</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>London</p></td><td><p>30</p></td><td><p>235</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Wales</p></td><td><p>8</p></td><td><p>35</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other</p></td><td><p>96</p></td><td><p>212</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>This government spent £1.6 billion on legal aid last year and in addition to the Civil Legal Advice Telephone service, we are investing £5m in innovative technologies to help people access legal support wherever they are.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 15/07/2019 16:06:15 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

1137663

	registered interest
	date	09/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Probate: Standards
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the probate system.
	tabling member constituency	Totnes
	tabling member printed	Dr Sarah Wollaston
	uin	911811
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>Waiting times in the probate service have recently increased. However, following urgent action by the courts service, they are now starting to improve.</p><p> </p><p>The temporary delays were the result of more work coming into the system and the impact of the initial move to a new IT system for managing probate work.</p><p> </p><p>Now that move is complete, and the unusually high workload has been dealt with, we expect waiting times to continue to improve – and be back to normal levels in the coming weeks.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 09/07/2019 16:19:12 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4073 label Biography information for Dr Sarah Wollaston