Vol. 421 No. 2
78 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Justice if, in the light of the finding of the Comptroller and Auditor General that (1) the processing of 25,000 unpaid parking fines became unenforceable because of delays in issuing summonses and (2) only 30 per cent of all traffic summonses are served, he intends to review the procedures in these areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The delays adverted to in the 1990 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General were the result of a special set of circumstances which arose in the period 1 July to 9 October 1990 when the court in Chancery Street was closed so that urgent repairs to the building could be carried out — the report contains a detailed explanation of the circumstances. Measures have been taken designed to ensure that a similar situation will not arise again.
The relatively low summons service rate in parking offence cases is due to a variety of factors, among them the fact that a proportion of such offenders take steps to evade service. It was for the purpose of tackling this problem that provision was made in the Courts Act, 1991, for the service of summonses by recorded delivery. The new arrangements will be implemented as soon as possible and I am confident that they will significantly improve the summons service rate.
