Written question asked by Brooks Newmark (Conservative) on Thursday, 26 February 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 2 March 2009. It was answered by Bridget Prentice (Labour) on Thursday, 5 March 2009 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.

Repossession Orders: Braintree

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many court orders have been issued for the repossession of homes in Braintree constituency in each of the last five years.

Answer: Figures for Braintree constituency are not available. However, statistics on mortgage and landlord possession orders for county courts in the south east of England (1987-2008) are available via the Ministry of Justice website at:"http://www.justice.gov.uk/docs/stats-landlord-mortgage-historic-20-02-09.xls"These include figures for Chelmsford and Colchester county courts, which are nearest to Braintree constituency.The civil procedure rules state that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated. However, geographical boundaries of county courts may not necessarily be consistent with other administrative or constituency boundaries. Repossession orders made at Chelmsford and Colchester county courts may therefore relate to properties in other constituencies besides Braintree.These figures do not indicate how many homes have actually been repossessed. Repossessions can occur without a court order being made while not all court orders result in repossession.

Secondary information