Tomorrow, Wednesday 4 December, the House of
Lords Public Services Committee will hear from a language service
provider, The Language Shop (TLS), as it continues its inquiry
into the provision of interpreting and translation services in
courts. The session will seek to better understand the quality
assurance process in the provision of these services; including
how concerns about the quality of interpreting are addressed and
challenges faced by service providers.
The session will start at 11.00am and can be watched live
or on demand at Parliament
TV or in person in Committee Room 4, Palace
of Westminster.
Giving evidence will be:
-
Sam Lingard, Director, TLS; and
-
Jaiman Patel, Managing Director, TLS.
Questions will include:
- How would you respond to views that it may be challenging for
the current quality assurance model to judge the quality of
interpreting in some situations – such as whispered interpreting,
or interpreting in closed settings or settings where proceedings
are not recorded.
- How might the introduction of AI interpreting tools affect
quality assurance? How are TLS currently considering the use of
AI tools in interpreting more broadly?
- What data do you gather and pass on to the Ministry of
Justice? What other information might be useful to capture?
- What is your view of the current quality of interpreting
services offered in the courts?
- How are the assessors trained and supported to complete their
work?
- What recommendations should the Committee make to the
Government on how to improve interpreting and language services
in the courts?
