Source: https://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/CBP-7907
Timestamp: 2018-12-19 16:13:13
Document Index: 2467762

Matched Legal Cases: ['arts 2', 'art 1', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'art 2', 'art 5']

Commons Library Analysis: The Prisons and Courts Bill - Commons Library briefing - UK Parliament
The Bill is due to have its second reading on 20 March 2017.
As well as a longer paper, which covers the whole Bill, we have split the paper up into three sections for those who are only interested in those aspects:
Prison reform is covered here
Court reform is covered here
Whiplash is covered here
Library Briefing Paper CBP 7892: Prison and Court Statistics, England and Wales gives statistics on the Bill to accompany this Briefing Paper.
The Ministry of Justice has published Explanatory Notes. The Gov.UK website has a “latest news” page, Prisons and Courts Bill: what it means for you and a collection of relevant documents including factsheets on the Bill, impact assessments and equalities statements.
The Bill’s progress can be followed on the Prisons and Courts Bill page of the Parliamentary website, which also provides relevant documents such as proposed amendments and versions of the Bill.
Most of the Bill extends to England and Wales only. However, some aspects of the prison reforms also extend to Scotland and Northern Ireland, because Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons and the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman have functions relating to immigration detention, and this is a reserved matter. In relation to court reform, Parts 2 and 3 of the Bill are relevant to Scotland and Northern Ireland in so far that they make changes to the way in which reserved tribunals are administered.
Part 1 of the Bill concerns prison reform. The Government’s November 2016 white paper, Prison Safety and Reform, set out a range of proposals to deal with increasing levels of violence and self-harm in prisons and the persistently high levels of reoffending. A central proposal was greater autonomy for prison governors, currently being piloted in six “reform prisons”.
Which of the prison reforms are in the Bill?
Many of the proposed reforms do not need primary, or indeed any, legislation. As a result, there is actually very little in the Bill on prisons.
Clause 2 makes some changes to the law governing Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons, and provides inspectors with some additional powers. Clauses 4-20 would put the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman on a statutory footing. There were attempts to do this in 2004 and 2008, but these were abandoned.
Parts 2 and 3 of the Prison and Courts Bill will make significant changes to the courts and tribunals system in England and Wales. The provisions includes reforms to the criminal courts, civil courts, the family courts and tribunals in England and Wales.
What is driving these reforms?
The provisions in Parts 2 and 3 predominantly relate to Her Majesty’s Court and Tribunal’s (HMCTS) Reform Programme, which was launched in March 2014.[1] The programme, and this Bill, aim to modernise the justice system and improve access to justice, through a series of reforms designed to integrate technology and enhance efficiency. The aims and principles of the programme were set out in a joint statement by the Lord Chancellor, the Lord Chief Justice and the Senior President of Tribunals, titled Transforming Our Justice System, which was published in September 2016.
How will the criminal justice system be changed?
The proposed reforms to the criminal courts focus on expanded use of technology, in particular by providing for more hearings and decisions to be conducted in writing (including electronically) or virtually via audio and video links. The proposals that have attracted most comment are those to enable “fully virtual” court hearings, and those to introduce a new automated online conviction procedure for certain low-level non-imprisonable offences.
How will the bill reform the civil justice system?
Part 2 of the Bill also provides the legal foundations for the introduction of new online procedures and online dispute resolution (ODR) for the civil courts, family courts and tribunals. The clauses enable the creation of a new online court that could deal with low value money claims below £25,000, as was recommended by Lord Justice Briggs’ Civil Courts Structure Review. The clauses would allow new online procedures to apply to existing civil courts, family courts and tribunals. The Government’s Transforming our justice system paper indicates that the Social Security and Child Support Tribunal is going to be one of first “to be moved entirely online, with an end-to-end digital process that will be faster and easier to use for people that use it”.
What’s happening to appointments for senior judges?
What about the Judicial Appointments Commission is changing?
Against a background of rising motor insurance premiums and the perception (not universally accepted) of the existence of a “compensation culture”, there has been a focus on the incidence of personal injury claims for whiplash injuries, insurance fraud more generally, and the extent to which this has affected the cost of motor insurance.
The Bill: Part 5
In general, lawyers’ groups, including the Law Society and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, are among those who have raised concerns about the Government’s proposals, while the Association of British Insurers has welcomed them.
The Government considers that the reforms would lead to savings of about £1bn and expects this to be passed on to motorists, resulting in an average saving per motor insurance premium of £40. Others disagree that the savings will be passed on and also consider it unfair that the reforms would reduce the compensation payable to genuine claimants, and leave victims to conduct claims without legal advice. There is also disagreement about whether the number and cost of whiplash claims has increased.
Background information about the whiplash provisions is provided in Library briefing paper, Small claims for personal injuries including whiplash. Information about factors influencing the cost of motor insurance premiums, and what Government and the industry have done to try and reduce costs, is provided in Library briefing paper, Motor car insurance.
Commons Briefing papers CBP-7907
Authors: Pat Strickland; Catherine Fairbairn; Sally Lipscombe; Jack Simson Caird; Gail Bartlett; Douglas Pyper; Lorraine Conway; Sarah Barber
Commons Library Analysis: The Prisons and Courts Bill ( PDF, 1.29 MB)
The Prisons and Courts Bill: Court Reform ( PDF, 949.45 KB)
The Prisons and Courts Bill: Prison aspects ( PDF, 653.48 KB)
CBP07907: Whiplash ( PDF, 665.99 KB)