Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the independent review of qualifications and experience required of spoken language interpreters in HM Courts and Tribunals Service will be completed; and when it will be published.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The review of qualifications and experience has been completed by an independent expert. We are considering its findings as part of a wider review of service requirements currently being undertaken within the Ministry of Justice, which is helping inform the development of new tender specifications. This is a complex process and covers a wide range of agencies within MoJ. Because this is linked with the ongoing language services procurement and invitation to tender work it is unlikely anything will be published before 2024. We will, of course, publish the outcome of the review once it is complete.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the invitation to tender for the next contract to provide spoken word translation and interpretation services for HM Courts and Tribunals Service will be issued.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice’s invitation to tender for the new spoken word services contract is expected to be published in 2024. The MoJ is currently assessing requirements for the new contract, which are complex, as it supports multiple agencies within the department. Timescales for the tender publication will be refined after this.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve the supply chain of spoken word interpreters for HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice and HMCTS engage regularly with commissioning bodies, educational institutions, and external stakeholder working groups, including language professional membership organisations, regarding the routes available to those wanting to become interpreters working within the justice system. We are also engaging with the market in advance of the upcoming tender for interpreter services.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the right to translation services for people engaged with the criminal justice system, under Directive 2010/64/EU of the European Parliament, and incorporated into UK law by 18 different measures, will be affected by the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill; and if so, whether this right will be (1) sunsetted, (2) retained, (3) replaced, or (4) updated.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The measures implementing Directive 2010/64/EU concerning the right to translation services for people engaged with the criminal justice system are in scope of the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill. We are reviewing these and other pieces of retained EU law for which the Ministry of Justice is responsible to decide whether they should remain on the statute book, and if so whether they should in due course be amended using powers in the Bill, or whether they should be left to sunset.
The provision of translators and intermediaries is a priority for this government, and we do not intend to remove the right to translation services for people engaged with the criminal justice system.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government when the invitation to tender for the new contract for provision of court and tribunal spoken word interpreters will be issued.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice has been assessing options for tendering the new contract for provision of spoken word interpreters. Our plans remain commercial in confidence at this time. Information will be published to the market in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the full independent review of qualifications and standards for court and tribunal spoken word interpreters, announced by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar on 12 January (HL Deb, col 1151), has been completed; and if so, when it will be published.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This review is ongoing alongside a wider and comprehensive review of language service requirements which is currently being undertaken within my Department. We will, of course, publish the outcome of that review once it is complete.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how often each year between 2017 and 2020 interpreters were used in courts or tribunals in each of the following case categories, as specified by the Ministry of Justice's language services contract: (1) complex written, (2) complex, and (3) standard.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
A table with the answer to the question is below:
HMCTS - Volume By Complexity & Calendar Year | ||
Year | Complexity | Volume |
2017 | Standard | 25,899 |
2017 | Complex | 104,382 |
2017 | Complex Written | 3,766 |
2018 | Standard | 26,230 |
2018 | Complex | 101,539 |
2018 | Complex Written | 4,125 |
2019 | Standard | 27,520 |
2019 | Complex | 100,720 |
2019 | Complex Written | 5,687 |
2020 | Standard | 27,113 |
2020 | Complex | 69,058 |
2020 | Complex Written | 4,046 |
Please note this data includes fulfilled Face to Face bookings only due to the enquiry referring to instances where HMCTS has ‘engaged individuals’
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 18 May (HL Deb, col 558) that interpreters "will be removed from the register if they fail to reach the required standard", what are the detailed components of "the required standard".
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a suite of high- quality language service contracts, that meet the needs of all those that require them.
The contracts have a clearly defined list of qualifications, skills, experience and vetting requirements interpreters must meet, which have been designed to meet the needs of the justice system. These are
set out in our contracts, which can be found at the following link:
Our qualification and experience requirements and associated quality assurance arrangements provided by The Language Shop (TLS), have been carefully considered and have been designed so as to maintain the quality of interpretation provided under the contract, meet the demands and requirements of the Ministry and other contract users and encourage new entrants to the profession.
The Ministry of Justice will shortly be undertaking work to develop the next generation of Language Services contracts.
For the period 01/01/2019 – 21/05/2021, 169 language professionals have been removed and 40 language professionals have been sanctioned as a result of a Spot Check or In-Person Assessment.
The required standard comprises a number of different elements
All interpreters are required to meet the qualification requirements set out in the contract between the MoJ and the language service supplier. The requirements vary depending on the complexity of the bookings and the language in question. The specific requirement in each case is set out here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137?p=@=UFQxblRRPT0=NjJNT08
TLS review the qualifications at the point of carrying out an assessment of an interpreter and will remove the interpreter if the supplier fails to demonstrate that they hold the correct qualifications.
All interpreters are required to comply with the MoJ code of conduct at all times. Any serious breach of the code of conduct, observed through an assessment by TLS or identified and confirmed through a complaint investigation, will result in removal from the register.
Interpreters also have to demonstrate competence in language proficiency, interpreting/professional skills, and subject matter knowledge. Interpreters are regularly assessed to ensure their interpreting meets the requirements of the assignment, being observed across each of the three competencies.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many interpreters registered with the Ministry of Justice have been (1) removed from the register, or (2) otherwise sanctioned, as a result of the spot checks and in-person assessments carried out from 1 January 2019 by the quality assurance provider The Language Shop.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a suite of high- quality language service contracts, that meet the needs of all those that require them.
The contracts have a clearly defined list of qualifications, skills, experience and vetting requirements interpreters must meet, which have been designed to meet the needs of the justice system. These are
set out in our contracts, which can be found at the following link:
Our qualification and experience requirements and associated quality assurance arrangements provided by The Language Shop (TLS), have been carefully considered and have been designed so as to maintain the quality of interpretation provided under the contract, meet the demands and requirements of the Ministry and other contract users and encourage new entrants to the profession.
The Ministry of Justice will shortly be undertaking work to develop the next generation of Language Services contracts.
For the period 01/01/2019 – 21/05/2021, 169 language professionals have been removed and 40 language professionals have been sanctioned as a result of a Spot Check or In-Person Assessment.
The required standard comprises a number of different elements
All interpreters are required to meet the qualification requirements set out in the contract between the MoJ and the language service supplier. The requirements vary depending on the complexity of the bookings and the language in question. The specific requirement in each case is set out here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137?p=@=UFQxblRRPT0=NjJNT08
TLS review the qualifications at the point of carrying out an assessment of an interpreter and will remove the interpreter if the supplier fails to demonstrate that they hold the correct qualifications.
All interpreters are required to comply with the MoJ code of conduct at all times. Any serious breach of the code of conduct, observed through an assessment by TLS or identified and confirmed through a complaint investigation, will result in removal from the register.
Interpreters also have to demonstrate competence in language proficiency, interpreting/professional skills, and subject matter knowledge. Interpreters are regularly assessed to ensure their interpreting meets the requirements of the assignment, being observed across each of the three competencies.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase the (1) qualifications, and (2) experience, required for interpreters to be listed on the Ministry of Justice register to the same levels as interpreters joining the National Register of Public Service Interpreters.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
The Ministry of Justice is committed to ensuring the justice system is supported by a suite of high- quality language service contracts, that meet the needs of all those that require them.
The contracts have a clearly defined list of qualifications, skills, experience and vetting requirements interpreters must meet, which have been designed to meet the needs of the justice system. These are
set out in our contracts, which can be found at the following link:
Our qualification and experience requirements and associated quality assurance arrangements provided by The Language Shop (TLS), have been carefully considered and have been designed so as to maintain the quality of interpretation provided under the contract, meet the demands and requirements of the Ministry and other contract users and encourage new entrants to the profession.
The Ministry of Justice will shortly be undertaking work to develop the next generation of Language Services contracts.
For the period 01/01/2019 – 21/05/2021, 169 language professionals have been removed and 40 language professionals have been sanctioned as a result of a Spot Check or In-Person Assessment.
The required standard comprises a number of different elements
All interpreters are required to meet the qualification requirements set out in the contract between the MoJ and the language service supplier. The requirements vary depending on the complexity of the bookings and the language in question. The specific requirement in each case is set out here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/975cb99e-fec6-430f-8f31-fd532a907137?p=@=UFQxblRRPT0=NjJNT08
TLS review the qualifications at the point of carrying out an assessment of an interpreter and will remove the interpreter if the supplier fails to demonstrate that they hold the correct qualifications.
All interpreters are required to comply with the MoJ code of conduct at all times. Any serious breach of the code of conduct, observed through an assessment by TLS or identified and confirmed through a complaint investigation, will result in removal from the register.
Interpreters also have to demonstrate competence in language proficiency, interpreting/professional skills, and subject matter knowledge. Interpreters are regularly assessed to ensure their interpreting meets the requirements of the assignment, being observed across each of the three competencies.