No funding has been allocated for the ‘open justice champions’ promised by the judiciary to help the public observe court proceedings, the Gazette has learned. 

Mr Justice Nicklin announced the initiative last month. In a speech entitled ‘Open justice – fit for purpose’, the High Court judge said: ‘The board and HMCTS are aware that there can be issues with people gaining timely access to remote hearings. HMCTS are working to provide “Open Justice Champions”.’ The regionally based champions ‘will provide a single point of contact to assist in resolving open justice issues’.

Although Nicklin did not provide further details in his speech, the Gazette understands the ‘champions’ will be mid-level civil servants responsible for giving people resources and information. 

In a freedom of information request by the Gazette, the Ministry of Justice was asked to reveal how many champions would be appointed, which HMCTS staff had been given the role, as well as any HMCTS documents about the appointment process. 

The MoJ responded: ‘We do not hold the information due to the ongoing development of the Open Justice Champions Scheme, therefore this information does not yet exist.’

Asked about funding for the champions, it responded: ‘There is no new funding for these roles. The skill of understanding open justice and enacting open justice is already an expectation of employees in the MoJ.’

Last year, Nicklin was appointed chair of the judiciary’s Transparency & Open Justice Board.