'Slow' Exeter Combined Court service 'improves'
A court service with one of the slowest records in processing criminal cases in England and Wales has improved, the Ministry of Justice has said.
Exeter Combined Court Centre had an average wait of 59 weeks between an offence being committed and a verdict being reached between January and March.
However, between April and June the average wait was reduced to 50 weeks, the government said.
The national average is 45 weeks.
Justice minister Damian Green said: "We are committed to providing court users with faster and more effective access to justice.
"We are working with the police and Crown Prosecution Service to further improve efficiency across the whole of the criminal justice system and transform what was a fragmented paper-based system into a modern, digital service which meets the high standards expected by the public.
"It is time we move the court system into the 21st Century."
Figures for January and March were released following a parliamentary question from the Labour shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan.
He asked the Ministry of Justice how long it took from a crime being committed to conclusion of a case at Leicester Crown Court.
In response he was given the figures for all the waiting times in England and Wales.