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Family Justice

I, too, broadly welcome the Secretary of State's statement as a move in the right direction. There is a basic principle, as I hope he will agree, that justice should be seen to be done. Secret justice is often injustice. Privately heard witnesses who think they are less likely to be found out are more likely to be self-serving than witnesses in public, judges are more likely to go along with the cosy consensus that often develops between experts when there is no prospect of public comment on their judgments, and public authorities are more likely to act on insufficient evidence when their decisions are not subject to public scrutiny. It is right that that principle should apply even in difficult cases, such as those in family proceedings. It is understandable that there will be some resistance from some professional groups, and clearly there is a balance to be struck between the public interest and the interests of individuals, especially of children, but as the hon. Member for Arundel and South Downs (Nick Herbert) said, I hope the Secretary of State agrees with Sir Mark Potter when he said in October that more openness would help to dispel myths about bias and inaccuracy in the family court, especially if there are enforceable rules about anonymity. The Secretary of State spoke only about the media. He did not speak about access to the courts for the public. Obviously, different considerations apply, but what conclusions have the Government reached on admitting the public to some family proceedings? On the publication of judgments, I am a little disappointed that the right hon. Gentleman has not gone further than a pilot. Publication of judgments, suitably anonymised, obviously, is vital to the scrutiny of what judges do. Their judgments must be open to comment and criticism; otherwise the law itself cannot develop. There have been cases where even professional law reporters were excluded from the courts. Surely the Secretary of State agrees that that should not happen. I welcome what the right hon. Gentleman said about the disclosure of information by parents, but may we be clear about what that means? Will parents be able to discuss their case with their MP, which was one of the examples that he gave? What will be the position on the important issue of expert witnesses and second opinions? Will parents be able freely to approach experts who might help to challenge the views of the local authority expert in their case? Will the Secretary of State be specific about what part of Clayton v. Clayton he proposes to overrule? There are two parts to that judgment. Is he saying that Parliament should overrule the part about the film that the father was going to make when the child had been abducted? Overruling that would make the situation worse for the child's privacy, not better. Finally, it is disappointing that the right hon. Gentleman has not taken the opportunity to make a wider announcement about family courts, especially about the increase in family court fees in public law cases from £150 to £5,000. Will he tell the House what effect on the volume of cases that change has had? What are his criteria for the success or failure of that policy? Is it just raising more money, or does he want there to be fewer cases?