The Government's U-turn on a bid to close or downgrade 13 small courthouses around the country is a victory for small town justice, says National's Rural Affairs spokesman, Shane Ardern.

"The anger and disbelief at the courts proposal shown by many small communities obviously rattled the Courts Minister into this sudden backdown.

"The Minister's hypocrisy in claiming that he's listened to the concerns of local communities, when for months he's ignored these people, is staggering. It's only because of pressure from National MPs that he's finally buckled.

"The provinces have spoken out and the Minister's been forced to listen. This is a wake-up call to this Government that if you trifle with rural and provincial services, you can expect this sort of pressure.

"I congratulate the thousands of New Zealanders who put so much effort into forcing this U-turn," says Mr Ardern.

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