Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which locations her Department has identified as potential candidates for the first stages of the roll-out of section 28 of the Youth Justice Criminal Evidence Act 1999, announced in her Department's publication, Transforming Our Justice System, published in September 2016; and if she will make a statement.

The Government is committed to making sure that victims and witnesses of crime get the support they need and have the confidence to come forward, which is why we are rolling out recorded pre-trial cross-examination for vulnerable and intimidated witnesses. Roll out of the measure will start in January 2017 in Leeds, Liverpool and Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Courts, the courts where the pilot took place. It will continue to be rolled out in other Crown Courts during 2017.