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Small Claims (Courts)

: No, they have not always done so. GPs did not always charge for medical reports. [Interruption.] The hon. Gentleman keeps saying that they did, but GPs did not always charge for medical reports. GPs are now considerably better paid, but they charge and charge more. I guess that we are bound to go that way, and it is reasonable that they are paid. However, if one asks one's GP for a medical report, it is important that they be obliged to provide it within a limited time. They do not always do so; it often takes a long time to receive a medical report. It would be helpful if they were provided quickly. I want to reinforce a point made throughout the debate. For the considerable numbers of people who go into the legal system, these sums of money are significant. People can become obsessed about small sums, but they are significant. In relation to an injury or another matter, people can, rightfully, become upset. When Mr. and Mrs. Citizen take on a big—sometimes not so big—company, they feel that they are entitled to their argument, to be treated decently and quickly, and to receive the remedy quickly. The fast-track small claims system is unarguably a good idea. It is better we have that than the old rigmarole of people going through the procedures with lawyers on both sides. The Committee addresses several significant measures that will improve the system. The Minister, with her commitment to access to justice, will I hope ensure that the Government respond as quickly as possible. We have not got the system right, and there are good suggestions about how we can make it better. We can do other things, and I hope that by the end of this decade we shall have better access to civil justice than we have ever had. If we do, I hope that the ordinary citizen will feel that getting justice does not involve such a ridiculously difficult system as they often feel it does at the moment.