Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of expenses available to lay magistrates.

Magistrates are an essential part of the justice system and their commitment to giving their time to dispense justice in their communities is greatly appreciated. As such, the department recognises the need to ensure magistrates are not left out-of-pocket for having conducted judicial duties. In April 2021, the department published a new magistrates expenses policy, following consultation across the magistracy.

This revised policy includes a number of changes to make the magistracy more attractive to those in work or who incur carer or childcare costs as a result of judicial duties. This includes increasing the upper payment threshold for Financial Loss Allowance (FLA) claims by 16%.