Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many court hearings held remotely since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic have (1) included the virtual presence of an interpreter, and (2) been rescheduled because an interpreter was needed but not available. [T]
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
Information on how many hearings held remotely since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic for spoken and non-spoken interpretation is provided below. The difference in start dates reflect the fact that thebigword’s system did not start recording any remote bookings until 30th March. We expect that very few took place before this date.
| Dates | Number of telephone interpreting hearings | Number of video remote interpreting hearings |
thebigword – spoken interpretation | 30.3.2020 – 12.6.2020 | 2769 | 1470 |
Clarion uk – Non- spoken interpretation | 23.3.2020 – 12.6.2020 | N/A | 288 |
The Ministry of Justice does not collect data on all hearings that have been rescheduled because an interpreter was unavailable. HMCTS performance data, including ineffective trial rates due to interpreter availability, is currently not available for this period.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when the contract with thebigword to provide interpreting and translation services in the criminal justice system will be reviewed.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Language Services contracts commenced on 31 October 2016, with thebigword appointed as providers of spoken face to face, telephone and video interpretation as well as translation and transcription services.
The initial term of the contracts is four years with up to three one-year extensions available.
The initial term of the contracts with thebigword is due to expire on 30th October 2020. The first option to extend for one-year has been agreed for translation and transcription services, and has also been approved for spoken face to face, telephone and video interpretation services.
The future of the contract, including the possibility of further extensions, is currently being considered.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they expect to bring forward measures to ensure that Directive 2010/64/EU of the European Parliament, providing for the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings, will be incorporated into UK statute before 29 March; and if so, when.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
Directive 2010/64/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings was transposed into UK domestic law by 27 October 2013 when it came into force. The Government has no plan currently to alter those provisions.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which company, or companies, are being sub-contracted by <i>thebigword</i> to provide court interpreting services; and whether those companies are subject to quality assurance.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
To ensure a high and consistent level of fulfilment across all geographical areas and in rare languages, thebigword have partnered with a number of subcontractors, namely: Global Language Services Limited, Cintra Translations Limited, Debonair Languages Ltd, Supreme Linguistic Services Ltd, Mango Spice Language Solutions, J-anne Interpreting and Translation Service Limited, Global Translation Services and Language River.
Thebigword must ensure that its subcontracts contain obligations no less onerous on the sub-contractor than those imposed on them by the Ministry, including those relating to quality and performance standards. Thebigword are also responsible for carrying out audits to ensure subcontractor adherence to the contract service specification.
All language professionals provided by thebigword, whether directly or via subcontractor, will be subject to ongoing quality assurance provided by The Language Shop. This includes a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the provision of court interpreters is being independently monitored.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The new language service contracts began on 31 October 2016 and are subject to robust governance arrangements.
These include monthly meetings with suppliers and stakeholders to monitor and discuss, in detail, the quality of the services being provided and performance against contractual performance indicators. The contracts also provide for the Ministry to audit the suppliers to verify the accuracy of contractual payments, management information, and compliance with contractual obligations.
In addition, the Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide independent quality assurance of the services provided under the other contracts, including those awarded to the thebigword Ltd. The Language Shop undertakes this assurance in a number of ways, including managing the Ministry’s register of interpreters, conducting an annual audit of supplier processes for introducing new linguists, and a programme of 'spot checks' of interpreters undertaking assignments.
The Language Shop also has a responsibility to assure the correct levels of qualifications, skills, security clearance and experience are held by each linguist through their ongoing assessment programme and in response to complaints or specific concerns during the contract period.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, in the light of the payment levels and cancellation policy established by the Ministry of Justice.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry is keen to maintain the quality and capacity of the future supply chain of qualified court interpreters, to make sure that the justice system continues to be supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.
The Ministry has awarded a contract to 'The Language Shop' (part of the London Borough of Newham) to provide us with independent quality assurance of the translation and interpretation services. This contract also includes the requirement for The Language Shop to develop and administer a Language Professional Trainee Scheme with the primary objective of increasing the resource available to the other language service suppliers in pursuit of fulfilling Commissioning Body bookings.
The Trainee Scheme will provide one or more clear, structured and flexible pathways for part qualified language professionals to become qualified within specified timescales. The Language Shop, and the other language service suppliers, are also required to jointly promote and encourage participation in the Scheme at the point of registration and through industry and academic networks and events.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the cost, in the last quarter of 2016, of cancellations and adjournments of court hearings because no interpreter arrived, or because the interpreter arrived too late, or was an interpreter in the wrong language, or proved to be an inadequate interpreter; and how this cost compares with each quarter of the previous year.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the contract with <i>thebigword</i> for court interpreters specifies any particular level or type of qualification which individual interpreters are expected to have.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of high quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.
Bookings are classified depending on their complexity level, namely: ‘standard’, ‘complex’ and ‘complex written’. These complexity levels were determined by each Commissioning Body.
I can confirm that the contract sets out the minimum level of qualification and experience a language professional is required to have in order to work on each complexity level of booking. Details of these qualifications can be found at: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters under the contract with <i>thebigword</i>; and if so, what is it, and against what baseline it is measured.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a range of quality language services that meet the needs of all those that require them.
All our new language service contracts contain robust performance and charging provisions which are designed to ensure the value for money and affordability of the services provided by the department's suppliers. However, we have not felt it appropriate to set a target figure for cost savings for the provision of court interpreters, which is a demand-led service, given the importance we attach to the provision of such support to those who most need it.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to include interpreting in public services within the list of excepted professions in Schedule 1 to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 lists areas of activity and proceedings which are exceptions to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA), meaning that the employer or other relevant body is entitled to ask for, and take into account, certain spent cautions and convictions (as well as unspent convictions).
For inclusion within the Exceptions Order, there has to be compelling evidence that there exists an exceptional reason for the disclosure of the spent caution or conviction. For example, where the role involves working with vulnerable people. For the ROA to continue to be effective in achieving its aims of improving access to employment and rehabilitation, exceptions to the Act should only be sought where there is good reason.
The exceptions take into account the role the person is carrying out and not necessarily the profession or job they do (unless it is proportionate to protect all roles in a job or profession). Interpreters in certain public service positions may already be included in the Exceptions Order, for example those working within prisons or those working in certain roles with children or vulnerable adults. It would not be appropriate or proportionate, however, to introduce a blanket provision to cover all such interpreters.