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Lord Chancellor's Department
Press Notice
17 October 1998
POLITICAL BALANCE ON MAGISTRATES' BENCHES "TIME FOR CHANGE?" ASKS LORD CHANCELLOR
Is the attempt to establish political balance on magistrates' benches
an outdated hangover from the days of class-based voting?
The Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine, announced today that his Department
is publishing a consultation paper to re-open the question whether
achieving political balance among the lay magistracy should remain a
policy objective.
"This is an important initiative," he said, addressing the annual
general meeting of the Magistrates Association at Salford University.
"I am considering the argument that political balance is an
anachronistic hangover from the days of class-based voting; that
political affiliation is no longer an effective test of background;
and that political balance no longer equals social balance.
"I have come to the view that it may be time for change," he said,
asking for magistrates' comments on the subject.
"Last year I spoke about the need to have balanced benches. I wanted
to uphold in practice the long established objective of ensuring a
political balance on magistrates' benches reflecting last year's
election results. Political balance has been the policy of successive
Governments, Conservative and Labour, and has been endorsed by two
Royal Commissions. So, after the 1997 General Election I called for
more Labour voting candidates to be recommended for appointment by
Advisory Committees.
"I remember the headlines that greeted my speech: 'Uproar as Law
Chief demands Labour JPs' said the Mail on Sunday; 'Lord Irvine
attacked over call for Labour JPs' reported The Times. Well, never
let it be said that this is not a listening Government."
"Over the past year I have been giving very careful thought to this
issue. I have listened to the reasonable arguments put by the
Magistrates' Association and others against retaining this
requirement to balance benches politically."
"The consultation paper therefore proceeds on the basis that it is
essential to continue to secure a social balance, but questions
whether attempting to secure a political balance can now be
considered an adequate proxy for that. Indeed, it asks whether it may
not on occasions act as an impediment.
"It argues that as a result of the social changes in society, the
diminishing importance of class-based voting and the rise of other
values and identities, the use of political affiliation as a means of
balancing benches is no longer valid."
"It needs to be borne in mind that only a comparatively small number
of magistrates are appointed each year in relation to the total
number of active magistrates. Any possible improvement in balance
whether in terms of political persuasion, or indeed any of the other
balancing factors, can only be achieved gradually.
"It could also imply the need for the appointment of an excessive
number of individuals of one type of political persuasion over a
number of years. There is then the danger of creating a perception
that politics do play a part in the administration of justice,
although it is agreed on all sides that in a mature democracy,
politics have no place in the court room.
"Candidates for appointment are sometimes reluctant to give this
information because they think it has no relevance to their duties if
appointed as magistrates. Insistence on this being provided could
give rise to issues of human rights and, also, the confidentiality of
the ballot box.
"Public confidence in the lay magistracy is vital. The degree to
which the lay magistracy commands that confidence depends, first and
foremost, on the capacity of individual magistrates to discharge
their duties effectively. But it also depends on the extent to which
the bench reflects the diversity of the community which it serves."
The Lord Chancellor said that magistrates' decisions are seen as
judgments by a citizen's peers, or the judgment of the community on
itself. "Maintaining and improving the social balance of a bench
must always be an important consideration if the lay magistracy is to
continue to enjoy the public's confidence."
Notes for Editors
1. Reporters may obtain copies of the consultation paper from the
LCD press office.
2. Members of the public may obtain copies of the paper from
Mrs Jackie Hartley at LCD headquarters, tel: 0171-210 0670.
3. The consultation paper has been placed on LCD's website: www.open.gov.uk/lcd (Update 08/02/08 - This web site no longer exists.)
4. Lay magistrates in England and Wales, except in the Duchy of
Lancaster, are appointed by the Lord Chancellor on behalf, and in the
name, of The Queen under S.5 of the Justices of the Peace Act 1997.
In the Duchy of Lancaster, appointments are made by the Chancellor of
the Duchy.
5. Candidates are recommended for appointment by local Advisory
Committees. The Lord Chancellor is responsible for 94 Advisory
Committees; the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster for 17 Advisory
Committees. The Committees are made up, for the most part, of
magistrates but the Lord Chancellor now requires at least a third of
the membership to consist of local people who are not magistrates.
6. All candidates recommended to the Lord Chancellor for appointment
will have undergone a two-stage interview process. These interviews
will determine whether a candidate is personally suitable for
appointment
7. Once those candidates who are personally suitable have been
identified, the Advisory Committee is then required to have regard
to the need to ensure that the composition of the bench broadly
reflects the community which it serves in terms of gender, ethnic
origin, geographical spread, occupation and, at present, political
affiliation. At this stage, it may be that a candidate who is
personally suitable is not recommended for appointment because he or
she would exacerbate a current imbalance on the bench e.g. he or she
is in an occupation which is over-represented or has declared
support for a political party which is already over-reflected. The
Advisory Committee then makes its final recommendations on
appointments to the Lord Chancellor on this basis.
8. About 1300 appointments are made by the Lord Chancellor in a year.
As at 1 January 1998 there were 30,361 magistrates (15,713 men and
14,648 women) in England and Wales.
