Magistrates gain access to credit files
The Department of Constitutional Affairs has announced that magistrates’ courts will be able to access credit files to enable them to track down offenders who have defaulted on court penalties.
It has signed a one-year contract with credit reference agency Equifax, which will give all magistrates’ courts access to its database.
The Department believes that the system will mean courts can quickly check the latest whereabouts of those who have defaulted on court penalties and who have changed address without notifying the courts.
Announcing the contract, Courts Minister Christopher Leslie said that not knowing offenders’ whereabouts had been a “major barrier” in enforcing sentences. He said the new system would be a “significant additional tool in magistrates’ enforcement armoury which re-enforces our commitment to bringing offenders to justice and improve the level of confidence in the criminal justice system.
“It shows that we are serious about pursuing those who flout an order of the courts. It is what the public want and expect and it is what we are delivering.
“This means that offenders who refuse to comply with their penalty and have either moved, changed their name or telephone number, can be traced much more quickly and easily.”
Some magistrates’ courts are also to get access to the Police National Computer (PNC) in a pilot scheme that may be rolled out nationwide.
