CARMARTHEN East and Dinefwr MP Jonathan Edwards has accused government ministers and civil servants of simply “drawing lines on a map” from the comfort of their London offices with little regard for the consequences of their decisions.

Mr Edwards, speaking at a House of Commons debate on access to justice, said the minister had failed to grasp “the magnitude of the difficulties” rural court closures caused the public.

The Plaid Cymru MP highlighted how the proposed closure of two Carmarthen courts followed in the wake of courts in Ammanford and Llandovery – the rationale for which was the proximity of the facilities in the county town.

"One of my first contributions after being elected to the House of Commons in 2010 was to fight in this Chamber on behalf of the two magistrate courts that remained in my constituency: Ammanford and Llandovery,” said Mr Edwards.

"The Government proposed closing those courts on the basis that services would be provided in Carmarthen magistrates court, yet here we are debating the future of that court and the state-of-the-art family, tribunal and probate hearing centre that was opened in Carmarthen by the Lord Chief Justice in 2012. That goes to show, to use a famous Welsh political phrase, that centralisation is a process, not an event.”

Mr Edwards questioned when the next justice shake-up would see services now centralised to Llanelli moved to Swansea

"It is easy for Ministers and their civil servants to sit here in London and draw lines on a map and crosses through budget lines without understanding the full effect of the changes on the communities we represent," he told the Commons.

"Regrettably, the Minister doesn't understand the knock-on consequences of court closures which will, for starters, see local, independent solicitor firms become unviable. This will impact greatly on a person's ability to seek counsel and increase the barriers for those using the justice system.

"The Minister has clearly not grasped the magnitude of difficulties the Carmarthen court closures will bring. I will be making further representations to the Secretary of State and hope he will consider meeting with me so that I may stress the negative consequences of his proposals."