Kevin Hollinrake: Rural Yorkshire doesn't deserve to be court short

Of course, we must always try to balance our public finances and have come a long way from the position the Conservative Chancellor inherited in 2010 when our annual day-to-day spending was in deficit by £100bn.

Today we are finally back in the black on this measure, and for the first time since 2001.

Nonetheless, we need to make sure that any new policies, whilst potentially saving the taxpayer money, are fair to all wherever you live.

This is why I am concerned about the proposal to close Northallerton Magistrates Court and why we need to consider the advantages and the disadvantages.

The constituencies that the court serves are some of the largest and most rural in the UK so the closure presents many challenges because of the sheer distances involved, and the effects on some of my constituents, defendants, witnesses, court staff and magistrates would be significant and could have a very meaningful effect on access to justice.

The average age of my constituents is older than constituents living in urban areas; this, coupled with increasingly limited public transport, means that we have far more bus passes than we 
have buses.

If Northallerton was to close, it would increase journey times significantly as cases would then have to be heard in Harrogate, Skipton, York or possibly Middlesbrough.

This would double journey times for many people. A bus journey from Rosedale to York, for example, takes around three hours. Try getting there for a morning hearing – it is just not possible.

Then there’s the effect on police time when they are required to attend court, which I have discussed with the Police and Crime Commissioner, Julia Mulligan.

The prior closure of custody suites in Northallerton means the police already have to drive to Harrogate to detain a suspect, which can take an extra hour, a clear disincentive to make an arrest.