A plan that could see the closure of dozens of Scottish courts in a bid to slash spending would strike at the heart of local justice, a North East MSP has said.
As The Courier revealed in October, a number of courts in Tayside and Fife could be under threat as part of the move to drive down costs.
Now a leaked report has given an idea of the scale of the cuts. According to the leaked plans, it is being suggested that 34 sheriff and justice of the peace courts could close. Top of the hit-list are courts thought to be handling an insufficient number of cases and those in locations which are within travelling distance of larger centres.
Among those which could be affected are Kirkcaldy Justice of the Peace Court and Cupar, Forfar and Stonehaven Sheriff Courts.
It has also been suggested that jury trials, which deal with more serious offences, would be restricted to just 14 courts. That in itself is likely to be controversial, with some courts, including Dundee, already finding it difficult to fit in jury trials within strict deadlines.
In addition, it has been reported that the number of High Court circuit sittings could be greatly reduced.
Two of the courts said to be in the firing line are in Labour MSP Jenny Marra’s North East Scotland constituency.
”I think these proposals are really worrying,” she said. ”I think it’s obvious that both these courts, at Forfar and Stonehaven, do a very good job and have quite a busy schedule.
”It is very important that justice is seen to be done locally and I think there’s a risk that, if you take local courts away, you will lose the strong bond between the provision of justice and the local community.”
She added that she was also concerned at the effect such a move would have on ”vital” services which provide support to victims and witnesses in their own area.
”Taking these services away from the local community would not be in the interest of any kind of system that is developed.
”(Finance Secretary) John Swinney has always said there’s a closed envelope for funding but he has had choices and has exercised those choices, and if that leads to a downgrading of local justice he has some serious questions to answer.”
Closing courts, many of them in rural locations, has been suggested as a way for the Scottish Court Service (SCS) to balance its books in the coming years.£52.3 million cutThe service has been hit with a £52.3 million cut in its capital budgets over the next four years and a 20% fall in its revenue budget.
An SCS spokeswoman said: ”We have initiated a review which looks at what business should be done in different locations around the country and an internal discussion document was prepared to promote this conversation with SCS staff and judicial members to help us discuss practical issues and to assist us to develop options for delivering the service in the future.
”As part of our fact-finding we wanted to make sure we fully understood local issues and could take these into account along with other business analysis work we are undertaking. That is the stage we are currently at.
”When this review work is complete it will be our intention to produce ideas for further discussion and at that stage we will want to involve a wide representation of interested groups and individuals to help us develop and improve our proposals.
”It is too soon to speculate on the future of any particular court but any proposal to close a court will require a full public consultation to be undertaken and, ultimately, a decision by the Scottish Parliament.”Courts may closeLast month Holyrood’s Justice Committee heard from Lord Hamilton, Lord President and Lord Justice General of Scotland, that some courts may be closed.
He told the committee that some of the courts face mounting maintenance costs and said the programme of amalgamating sheriff courts and justice of the peace courts into single buildings could be extended. The plans will be put out to wider consultation early in 2012, he added.
Justice Committee convener SNP MSP Christine Grahame said she will ensure that the court service keeps that promise.
”There should be no closures without thorough consultation and the views of those in rural areas must be properly heard,” she said.
”This must be about the service delivered as well as the number of buildings there are. It is no surprise cutbacks from the UK Government mean everyone has to tighten their belt but we must ensure the principles of justice are maintained.”