Government considering plans to televise court verdicts

The statement was made as newspapers reported the Prime Minister would announce his support for the proposals when he addresses the Commons' Liaison Committee later today.

A spokeswoman from the Prime Minister's Office indicated that David Cameron could comment on the issue "if the opportunity arose".

The Ministry of Justice would need to consult with senior members of the judiciary before any proposals could be developed, a spokesperson said.

However, it is considering the possibility of allowing "limited recording and transmission from courts in specific circumstances".

It is not known which courts will be televised, but it is expected that transmission will not include witness evidence.

Cameras, including video cameras, are currently banned from courts under the Criminal Justice Act. However the Supreme Court, which does not feature witness statements or juries, was fitted with cameras when it opened in 2009. It allows visitors to watch appeals and judgments on televisions around the building without sitting in courtrooms.

Sky News has run a live video feed on its website since May which attracts an average of 90,000 visitors a day, according to the channel's head of news John Ryley.

He released the figures in an open letter to Justice Secretary Ken Clarke in which he said that television cameras in court would "go a long way to making the process more transparent and would dramatically improve public confidence in the system" after concerns about "discrepancies" in some of the sentences given to those involved in last month's rioting and looting.

Television companies have been pressing for greater access to courts for some time. Ryley and the BBC and ITN met with the Justice Secretary last year on the topic, according to the letter.

"We believe it is time that television cameras were allowed into all courts, starting with the televising of sentencing remarks and judgments. The audio would also be available to be used in radio news and current affair programmes and online," Ryley said.

Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer also announced his support for the move at a meeting of newspaper editors in May, according to the Guardian.

"In principle I would support a proposal that judgments, judge's closing remarks and judicial sentencing in criminal cases could be televised. There may be a case for going further, although I would obviously not want to promote anything that adversely affected the ability of victims or witnesses to give their best evidence to the court," he said.

"In principle I would support a proposal that judgments, judges' closing remarks and judicial sentencing in criminal cases could be televised. There may be a case for going further, although I would obviously not want to promote anything that adversely affected the ability of victims or witnesses to give their best evidence to the court."