Lady Hale

The former Supreme Court justice suggested mobile courts could compensate for the hundreds of court buildings closed by the UK government.

She told the National Pro Bono Centre conference on access to justice that the closures had made it less likely that court users would attend hearings.

She said: “I come from North Yorkshire. If somebody gets burgled in my town — magistrates’ court-type offences — they have to go a very long way to get to court to give their evidence.”

She said that remote hearings would not help people who lacked the appropriate technology.

“What we need to replace what we have sadly lost is mobile courts,” she said.

“We need a caravan court which consists of a judge and magistrates and an official [that] tours round the various towns and villages [and] enables real local justice to take place.”

She added: “It’s the little things that go by the way unless you’ve got real local justice available. We need to get back to that situation and there are good, cheap ways of doing it.”

The sale of 61 courts is thought to have raised about £122 million for HM Treasury. Some believe, however, that the total figure could reach £250m.