Translation Services
(asked on 19th July 2019) - View Source
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to Answer of 15 July 2019 to Question 275723, what the total spend of his Department was on translation services (a) in the 2017-18 financial year and (b) since 1 April 2018.
This question has been interpreted to mean costs for all language services, both translators, and interpreters provided in a court setting, and for printed materials available in HMCTS buildings.
The spend by Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service on courts translations services was as follows,
| Total Cost (£) |
Financial year 2017-18 | 11,487,719.68 |
Financial Year 2018-19 | 11,000,690.76 |
April 2019 – 30 Jun 2019 | 3,670,157.83 |
These figures do not include any expenditure related to central funds as these are not included in the accounts for HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
Our most recent statistics show language service requests are at their highest since the new contract was introduced in 2016 the clear majority were fulfilled. It is vital that victims, witnesses and defendants understand what is happening in court to ensure justice is done, and we will always take steps to ensure a qualified interpreter is provided when needed.