Written questions by Adam.

Whether his Department holds data on the outstanding caseload in the County Court in England and Wales.

No data is held regarding outstanding caseloads in the County Court in England and Wales. Civil cases do not progress through the court system in a linear way. The vast majority of civil cases settle, are resolved by default judgment, or conclude outside of a final court hearing. Only about 3% of cases are disposed of at a final hearing. Given this, and the fact that civil claims are often driven by party behaviour, an outstanding caseload figure would not provide a fair or meaningful reflection of County Court demand or performance.I can confirm County Court performance is improving, with the median time taken from claim issue to hearing falling for all tracks. The median time taken for small claims to go to trial was 36.1 weeks in October to December 2025, 6.4 weeks faster than the same period in 2024. The median time taken for fast/intermediate/multi track claims to go to trial was 9.3 weeks faster than the same period last year, at 57.4 weeks in the current quarter.

Whether his Department collects data on document handling errors or lost filings in County Court civil cases.

The information requested is not held centrally. The terms “document handling errors” and “lost filings” are broad and may encompass a wide range of issues, making it difficult to provide a specific or reliable answer. HMCTS is reducing the risk of administrative errors in civil claims through work to digitalise processes.The Deputy Prime Minister has announced further modernisation of civil justice with £50 million investment to continue digitalising the County Court.

What estimate she has made of the increase in court translator costs in each region in England and Wales in the last five year.

We do not hold spend data for each region. Total annual spend across all 4 language services contracts, with % increases have been calculated and set out below:Year Total Year on Year % increase Total Growth (since 2020) Sitting Days (Financial Year) 2020£20,217,548.09--2020/21 – 199,2002021£25,062,618.7124%24%2021/22 – 559,8882022£26,883,747.047%33%2022/23 – Over 565,0002023£30,374,050.4413%50%2023/24 – Over 580,0002024£31,625,158.354%56%2024/25 - TBC Off-contract spend:Year Total 2020£1,193,7882021£2,157,7592022£4,856,6162023£6,565,7812024£7,037,731The use of off-contract is typically to cover requirements that arise at short notice and those that are more challenging to fulfil, such as the requirement for languages that are rare or scarce, and as such are more expensive to source. The use of off-contract interpreters allows hearings to go ahead, to continue the delivery of justice.The next generation of contracts, currently being procured, includes the use of a secondary supplier of interpreters, specifically to source those short notice bookings, and to bring this spend on-contract, with benefits such as improved data and value for money.Performance levels can be accessed via the Published statistics, which can be found at: Criminal court statistics - GOV.UKComparison (2020–2024)Year On-Contract Spend (£) Off-Contract Spend (£) Total Spend (£) % On-Contract % Off-Contract 2020£20,217,548£1,193,788£21,411,33694.4%5.6%2021£25,062,619£2,157,759£27,220,37892.1%7.9%2022£26,883,747£4,856,616£31,740,36384.7%15.3%2023£30,374,050£6,565,781£36,939,83182.2%17.8%2024£31,625,158£7,037,731£38,662,88981.8%18.2%

What estimate she has made of the cost of off-contract bookings for interpreter bookings in the last five years.

We do not hold spend data for each region. Total annual spend across all 4 language services contracts, with % increases have been calculated and set out below:Year Total Year on Year % increase Total Growth (since 2020) Sitting Days (Financial Year) 2020£20,217,548.09--2020/21 – 199,2002021£25,062,618.7124%24%2021/22 – 559,8882022£26,883,747.047%33%2022/23 – Over 565,0002023£30,374,050.4413%50%2023/24 – Over 580,0002024£31,625,158.354%56%2024/25 - TBC Off-contract spend:Year Total 2020£1,193,7882021£2,157,7592022£4,856,6162023£6,565,7812024£7,037,731The use of off-contract is typically to cover requirements that arise at short notice and those that are more challenging to fulfil, such as the requirement for languages that are rare or scarce, and as such are more expensive to source. The use of off-contract interpreters allows hearings to go ahead, to continue the delivery of justice.The next generation of contracts, currently being procured, includes the use of a secondary supplier of interpreters, specifically to source those short notice bookings, and to bring this spend on-contract, with benefits such as improved data and value for money.Performance levels can be accessed via the Published statistics, which can be found at: Criminal court statistics - GOV.UKComparison (2020–2024)Year On-Contract Spend (£) Off-Contract Spend (£) Total Spend (£) % On-Contract % Off-Contract 2020£20,217,548£1,193,788£21,411,33694.4%5.6%2021£25,062,619£2,157,759£27,220,37892.1%7.9%2022£26,883,747£4,856,616£31,740,36384.7%15.3%2023£30,374,050£6,565,781£36,939,83182.2%17.8%2024£31,625,158£7,037,731£38,662,88981.8%18.2%

What comparative estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) off-contract bookings and (b) contract-based interpreter services.

We do not hold spend data for each region. Total annual spend across all 4 language services contracts, with % increases have been calculated and set out below:Year Total Year on Year % increase Total Growth (since 2020) Sitting Days (Financial Year) 2020£20,217,548.09--2020/21 – 199,2002021£25,062,618.7124%24%2021/22 – 559,8882022£26,883,747.047%33%2022/23 – Over 565,0002023£30,374,050.4413%50%2023/24 – Over 580,0002024£31,625,158.354%56%2024/25 - TBC Off-contract spend:Year Total 2020£1,193,7882021£2,157,7592022£4,856,6162023£6,565,7812024£7,037,731The use of off-contract is typically to cover requirements that arise at short notice and those that are more challenging to fulfil, such as the requirement for languages that are rare or scarce, and as such are more expensive to source. The use of off-contract interpreters allows hearings to go ahead, to continue the delivery of justice.The next generation of contracts, currently being procured, includes the use of a secondary supplier of interpreters, specifically to source those short notice bookings, and to bring this spend on-contract, with benefits such as improved data and value for money.Performance levels can be accessed via the Published statistics, which can be found at: Criminal court statistics - GOV.UKComparison (2020–2024)Year On-Contract Spend (£) Off-Contract Spend (£) Total Spend (£) % On-Contract % Off-Contract 2020£20,217,548£1,193,788£21,411,33694.4%5.6%2021£25,062,619£2,157,759£27,220,37892.1%7.9%2022£26,883,747£4,856,616£31,740,36384.7%15.3%2023£30,374,050£6,565,781£36,939,83182.2%17.8%2024£31,625,158£7,037,731£38,662,88981.8%18.2%

How many trials have been fully adjourned due to contractors failing to deliver prisoners to trial in each region in 2025.

We have interpreted your question to mean ineffective trials that do not start on their intended start date and need rescheduling. Trials can become ineffective for many reasons – due to the action or inaction of the parties or the courts. Delays or failures to bring prisoners to court are one such reason.Data on trial effectiveness at the criminal courts is published by region and reason, including “14. Ineffective reason: Defendant not produced by prisoner escort custody services” (although it should be noted that this may not have been as a direct result of PECS supplier failure). This data can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67e29a65d4a1b0665b8ee201/trials_tool.xlsx.