Stefan Mileschin

The Department for Justice minister Damian Green has said the cancellation of a computing contract will lead to a delay in acquiring said services.

Andy Slaughter, Labour MP for Hammersmith, asked if there has been an assessment about the effects of suspending the Department's end user computing and common services contract, as proposed in the Transforming the Criminal Justice System strategy.

Damian Green replied that the impact of cancellation has been assessed and it "is anticipated that there will be a minor delay in contracting for these services".

"It is planned for some if not all of this delay to be recovered in the transition phase from our old contracts to the new contract," Green said. "Therefore, impact on the wider Transformation programme is expected to be minimal".

The strategy was proposed to update the courtroom system digitally, including investing in wireless technologies for most court houses.

Green hopes by giving the Department a digital makeover - including with digital evidence screens and better, newer software - he would be able to cut down on the excess of paper in the courts, saving cash and time.

At the time he said the investment will "help us get rid of our outdated paper-based system, and turn our criminal justice system into a digital and modern public service".

"This will help provide swift and efficient justice," Green said, "treating victims and witnesses with the care and consideration they deserve".

Green's original proposal was to make courtrooms "fully digital" by 2016.

http://news.techeye.net/business/dam...trooms-delayed