The Courts Service (HMCS) is something of a Cinderella of the Criminal Justice System and well known for struggling to live within extremely limited means, whilst attempting to match the demands created by the better resourced Prison and Police Services as they seek to address the failure of human coexistence in our society. I was personally involved in the running of the Courts Service in Sussex and Surrey for 5 years from 2004-09 as a member and ultimately the Chair of the Courts Board. These boards were abolished by the incoming coalition as part of their bonfire of quangos but in their time they offered a way of governing the Courts System that allowed community members to play a role that had never been possible beforehand and may not ever happen again unless a future Government focuses its attention on the reforms needed to rehabilitate the whole CJS in a coherent and comprehensive manner. Along with the need for better and more open Governance in all parts of the CJS, the upgrade needed for most of the infrastructure used by HMCS is vital if true Justice is to be experienced in an appropriate way by all those whose lives are blighted by crime or disagreements. I recall one example from a civil Court in East Sussex where the Court Manager was forced to send and receive emails from a home Computer because the Courts Service was unable to pay for an internet enabled PC in her office, or elsewhere in the building.

When money is in short supply, wasted resources are even more unacceptable, although of course some waste exists in every system. However it is clear from my own experience and knowledge that decisions to build or upgrade Courts were taken on the basis of improving the quality of the Justice for victims as well as improving efficiency for the CSJ itself. They were certainly never taken quickly or lightly. This makes the news that emerged a week or so ago so much more disturbing than if the Courts System was awash with money and being run in a profligate manner. The report which has emerged of nearly £50M of public money that had been spent on projects to improve the Courts Service across the Country, which the incoming coalition decided to cancel is something that should be understood as totally shameful. This waste has denied local residents and the workers in our system from an improved environment, and will have led to the lost opportunities to create jobs as part of the construction of these facilities. I have written before about decisions by this Government to cancel plans and programmes on its arrival in office. In this case we have an idea of how much money was wasted in that process. These are in effect vanity cancellations. Unlike the decision to cancel the aeroplanes for Aircraft Carriers, the decision to cancel Court Buildings will usually not feature on the pages of the Daily Mail and get any publicity. However this is clearly one example that disproves that theory, let us hope that on return to the Commons in September or October, someone is held accountable for burning our money in their fire!