26 January 2015 by Monidipa Fouzder
Capita still
failing to hit interpreter target
Nearly
three years after the outsourcing of courtroom interpreting to a single
contractor, the service is still falling short of its key performance target,
according to the latest government figures.
Between
July and September 2014, Capita Translation and Interpreting completed 94.8% of
requests for language services – up from 94.1% in the previous quarter, but
falling short of the 98% requirement stated in the contract.
The
Ministry of Justice said this was the highest success rate since the contract
started in 2012. Nearly half (47%) of the 660 complaints received during the
quarter concerned the lack of an available interpreter.
The
number of completed requests for language services fell for the second
consecutive quarter, with 38,100 requests made under the contract, compared
with 39,600 in the previous three months. The MoJ said the fall was due to
fewer requests for language services from tribunal courts.
Courts
minister Shailesh Vara said the interpreting contract had continued to deliver
significant improvements since being introduced to tackle inefficiencies and
inconsistencies.
‘We
now have a quality service that is robust, sustainable and affordable, and we
have spent £27m less in the first two years of the contract,’ Vara said.
The
Law Society said it was ‘shocking’ that after nearly three years of a sole
provider being in place, the service was still failing to reach its performance
target.
‘A
lack of available interpreters costs time and causes unnecessary adjournments,
resulting in avoidable distress to victims and inconvenience to witnesses,’ the
Society said.
No comments:
Post a Comment