Four Kington magistrates and a Surrey Comet reporter went to Downing Street today to present our petition signed by 4,208 people who backed our campaign to save the magistrates' court.

Magistrates collected thousands of signatures on two successive weekends in Kingston town centre to add to the court users, police, lawyers, residents' associations and Comet readers who supported our campaign.

Last week the magistrates, council and Edward Davey MP presented their responses to the Government's plans to include Kingston among 157 magistrates' and crown courts it wants to close to save money.

Magistrate Graham Forrester, who handed the petition over the famous threshold, said: “Today was a very important part of our continuing campaign to keep Kingston Magistrates' Court.

"By handing in a petition of more than 4,000 signatures collected in Kingston to Downing Street we are keeping faith with more than 4,000 people and the people they represent who said they wanted to save the court.

"This is not the end of our campaign. We will continue stressing what we put in our submission to keep the court until we have won."