asked the Attorney-General when the Lord Chancellor last organised a sentencing conference.

On 10 January this year.

asked the Attorney-General if he will introduce a training programme for judges on the effectiveness of different sentences of the courts.

An important programme of conferences and seminars already exists, and judges are normally appointed to act as deputies or recorders before receiving full-time appointments. Consideration is already being given to widening the scope of the present arrangements, particularly for newly-appointed judges.