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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

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

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

671093

registered interest
date	10/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Private Sector
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to monitor staffing in private prisons.
tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
uin	HL4496
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2017 answer text <p>Historically this information is not held, we are making arrangements to capture and monitor this data as management information.</p><p> </p><p>Private providers are required to maintain a sufficient number of staff, with the requisite level of skill and experience to ensure that the Prison is a safe, secure and decent environment. Privately Managed Prisons continue to play an important role in the prison estate and performance of all providers is closely monitored.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 24/01/2017 17:48:24 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham

671095

registered interest
date	10/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prisons: Private Sector
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the planned recruitment of 2,500 new prison staff, how many new staff will be employed in private prisons; and how many of the estimated 5,500 staff required to replace staff retiring or leaving the service will be employed in private prisons.
tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
uin	HL4498
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2017 answer text <p>The planned recruitment of 2,500 new prison officers and estimated 5,500 replacements relates to public sector prison staff.</p><p> </p><p>Private providers are required to maintain a sufficient number of staff, with the requisite level of skill and experience to ensure that the Prison is a safe, secure and decent environment. We are engaging with private providers on how the new staffing model outlined in the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper will be implemented in private prisons.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 24/01/2017 17:50:30 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham

671096

registered interest
date	10/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prison Officers
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, of the planned recruitment of new prison staff, what the estimated change will be in staff-to-prisoner ratios in (1) public sector, and (2) private, prisons.
tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
uin	HL4499
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2017 answer text <p>We want our prisons to be places where staff and prisoners alike feel safe and secure. The introduction of new ways of working to support prisoners to reform will achieve this while also increasing frontline staff numbers.</p><p> </p><p>Prison Governors will be empowered to set their establishment staffing numbers. They will determine the precise grade mix and deployment of staff into their establishment to meet the individual needs of their specific prisoner population, in line with set minimum service requirements which are aligned to the NOMS Offender Management model. Staff numbers will vary across establishments, dependant on prisoner population and type of prison.</p><p> </p><p>We have already invested £14 million to provide more than 400 extra staff in ten of the most challenging prisons and work is underway to finalise the new staffing levels required for each of these establishments.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 24/01/2017 15:29:23 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham

670020

registered interest
date	09/01/2017
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Family Proceedings
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will participate in the consultation launched by the President of the Family Division on proposed changes relating to public hearings in family law cases.
tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
uin	HL4382
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2017 answer text <p>The last consultation document on transparency in the family courts the President issued was published in August 2014 and he has not published another since. A recent article published in a national newspaper which suggested otherwise was incorrect.</p> answering member printed Lord Keen of Elie question first answered 19/01/2017 14:57:20 answering member 4538 label Biography information for Lord Keen of Elie
tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham