Julian Smith: For justice's sake, this court should not close

THIS week marks the end of a consultation process on the future of over 157 courts across England and Wales. It is a consultation process Ihave been heavily involved with because of the strength of feeling against the proposed closure of North Yorkshire's only combined Magistrates' and County Court in Skipton.

From day one, I knew that for the community served by the court, from Ingleton in the north to Skipton in the south and one of the most rural and remote areas in England, this was going to be a major issue. And so it has proved.

Over the past few months, I have spoken to hundreds of people about the proposals. Almost all of them have been united in their opposition to the closure. Most accept, as I do, that money needs to be saved after years of spending beyond our means. They are not objecting to the closure for the sake of it but instead genuinely believe that closing the courts is the wrong decision for serious, important and compelling reasons.

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In our response to the Ministry of Justice, we have tried to be constructive and realistic. It has not been based on the volume of those who are opposed; there were not thousands of names on a petition. Instead, the response has been based on facts and informed opinion from those who would be directly affected by any change and those who know the truth about the current situation at the courts.

Judges, barristers, solicitors, legal advisors, charity workers and councillors are some of those who have made submissions, and that is on top of countless members of the public who have also done so. As I travelled from the far corner of my constituency near Bentham to Harrogate by train to test the time it would take to reach the proposed new courthouse for my constituents, I found it impossible to believe that witnesses would not be put off from given their view by the long,

expensive additional journey that would be required.

My conclusion after taking all this evidence on board is simple – I do not believe that the closure of Skipton Magistrates' Court and Skipton County Court should go ahead. I do believe that savings can be made by the consolidation of work from different areas of the county, but closing the courts would make justice for thousands of my constituents inaccessible and would not have the large financial benefits that the Ministry of Justice consultation suggests.

My response focused on several key areas. The financial arguments for closing Skipton's courts should be the most compelling – the primary reason for any review being to save money in the current financial climate. But detailed analysis and research has produced figures that demonstrate clearly that, contrary to the Ministry of Justice

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consultation, the court requires little capital spend and the operating costs of both courts are easily covered by income, particularly given that the workload is increasing year on year.

There is then the distance argument. The consultation suggests that access to courts in England should be "within a 60-minute commute". It is already difficult for some court users to make journeys to Skipton within that time limit, journeys to Harrogate or Bradford would exacerbate this problem and disenfranchise many from local justice. I was particularly alarmed by the comment of someone before magistrates in Skipton who reportedly told a probation officer: "I'll wait for the police to take me to court. The prison van will have to be my bus. I don't have the money to pay for the bus or rail fare. I am likely to have to steal to get to Harrogate and then steal to eat there if in court all day. This whole thing will just get me into further trouble."

Local justice is also a cornerstone of this country's legal system. The current proposal for the Skipton court breaks the link between local crime and local justice. Magistrates know the areas they serve, witnesses, victims and the accused go to court in the area where the crime was committed and the media reports on those cases that are heard. Justice is done, justice is seen to be done. Closing Skipton's courts would have a severe impact on local justice and create a society that is less responsible and less safe.

I sincerely hope that the Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty's Court Service listen to these views that I have expressed and the views that have been expressed by dozens of responses to the consultation

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directly. They should acknowledge that Skipton Magistrates' Court and Skipton County Court should not close. The case for closure has not been demonstrated; in fact, we have demonstrated a case for keeping them open long into the future.

Julian Smith is Conservative MP for Skipton and Ripon.

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