Magistrates and MPs slam court closures plan
Magistrates ad MPs have slammed the Ministry of Justice over its plans to close UK courthouses as part of cost-saving measures, accusing it of inflating the operating costs of keeping them.
Next month public consultation is due to end on the Ministry of Justice’s plans to close up to 157 of its 530 courthouses in England and Wales (see detailed data on your area Courts Figures Final).
The disposals could provide opportunities for developers and investors to buy attractive town centre sites.
The ministry has been consulting on the cost-saving measure for two months. However, the department is on a collision course with magistrates and MPs.
Among the accusations levelled at the ministry are claims that in the last year it has invested in expensive improvements to buildings that may be closed down.
As savage cuts to central government budgets are expected in the October comprehensive spending review, the ministry will be all the more anxious to press ahead.
On 10 August, the ministry told senior staff it would have to cut £2bn from the £5bn budget for activities such as running courts, which the closures would help it to achieve.
On the same evening, magistrates at Yorkshire’s Selby courthouse gathered to discuss the closure of a building where £860,000 has just been spent on installing disabled access.
One objector, who did not want to be identified, says: “If you were running a business and you spent that much on a building, you would sweat the asset to the max. This centralised system of closures is a disgrace.”
Across England and Wales magistrates also allege the department has inflated maintenance figures and running costs to justify closures.
For example, the ministry has been forced to admit that the saving it will make from closing Welsh courts is £1.4m less than originally claimed.
It also says Salford Magistrates Court has a £2.3m maintenance backlog. Scott Cowap, deputy bench chairman at Salford, questions the sums: “We have no idea whether these figures are right. How do you measure them? They could have in inflated them, of course.”
Some MPs also object. They say witnesses and defendants will have more expensive and lengthier journey times. Some would have to travel up to two hours to a local court.
Plans to close courthouses and replace them with new builds have been on the cards for some time. But with looming cuts, replacement courthouses will not be developed. Even so, developers may still be able to cash in on the closures.
To see which courts will be affected in your area, and more details about the properties, click here: Courts Figures Final
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