Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce delays in the family courts.

In the Spring Budget, we announced an additional £55 million to improve productivity, support earlier resolution of family disputes and reduce the number of cases coming to court. This includes creating a digital advice tool for separating couples, piloting early legal advice and supporting the expansion of the private law Pathfinder model.

We are also investing up to £23.6 million in the family mediation voucher scheme, which we intend will allow for its continuation up to March 2025. As of March 2024, over 26,000 families have successfully used the scheme to attempt to resolve their private law disputes outside of court.

In addition, we are working with the Department for Education and other partners on the Family Justice Board to tackle the longest running cases and increase the proportion of public law proceedings that conclude within the 26-week timeline. The Department for Education is also investing an extra £10 million to deliver new initiatives to address the longest delays in public law.