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Written question asked by Oliver Dowden (Conservative) on Thursday, 11 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 15 June 2026. It was answered by Sarah Sackman (Labour) on Friday, 19 June 2026 on behalf of the Ministry of Justice.


Solicitors: Training

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions his Department has had with the Solicitors Regulation Authority on an independent assessment process for trainee solicitors.

Answer

The Ministry of Justice regularly engages with the SRA on the effective operation of the legal services regulatory framework. This has included engagement with the SRA regarding the training and qualification requirements for solicitors and how these requirements are responding to changes in the legal profession.

The Ministry of Justice has not made a specific assessment of the adequacy of support available for trainee solicitors. It is for the SRA, as the relevant independent legal services regulator, to determine its approach to these matters, with oversight from the LSB. The SRA publishes annual reports on the operation of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam, which provide assurance on the robustness of the assessment and set out improvements in delivery and candidate support. These are available here: https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/research-publications/topic/education-training/.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
9048
Session
2026-27
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Solicitors Regulation Authority Training Solicitors
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk