To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many committal hearings were held in each of the last five years; and what estimate he has made of the cost of committal hearings in each of those years. (243283)

Committal hearings in the magistrates courts for the years 2003 to 2007 were: 51,492; 48,656; 47,939; 47,023; and 50,027. Cost data were not collated centrally prior to the creation of Her Majesty's Courts Services on 1 April 2005. Consequently, it is not possible to estimate the costs of committals in 2003 and 2004. The estimated costs of committals for the years 2005 to 2007 are: £5.6 million; £4.6 million; and £5.2 million.